Love, Laughter & Deceit
by Verity West
Summary: It's been over 25 years since Voldemort was defeated. Odessa Grace and Hastings Applespice are now professors at Hogwarts, along with Sirius Potter and Gabriel Lupin. It appears to be a normal year, until Voldemort's heir decides to follow in his steps.
1. Chapter 1

Staring blankly at the bland, grey walls that surrounded her, former Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Hastings Applespice rubbed her eyes, trying desperately to stay awake. Around her she could hear the noise of ministry business going on and she once again questioned why anybody in their right mind would want to work there. Why was she working there? Oh yeah, she had quit her job at Hogwarts. Sighing, Hastings took out a piece of paper and scribbled a quick note to her friend Odessa Grace, who was lucky enough to have a window in her cube.

Ode -

I have to get out of here. My head keeps dropping onto my desk. Meet me in the Department of Mysteries in five minutes?

Yours,

Hastings

Hastings folded the note into a paper airplane, knowing that her folding skills were under par, and it would more than likely flutter precariously around the ministry before finding its intended reader. Hastings tapped the note with her wand, muttering a confidentiality spell, then let it fly down the hall.

Odessa Grace absently mindedly twirled her hair with her wand, something she hadn't done in years due to the serious mishaps that had occurred. However, on this occasion, she completely engrossed in coming up with a new limerick.

There once was a man from Venus

Odessa giggled to herself. _Can't do that one_, she thought, _not an original – although rather funny_.

I once went to a party

Where everyone was rather farty

I held my nose

And ran on my toes

To find another Tart-y

_Well, not my best work, but it's somewhat amusing anyway. What else rhymes with – _"Ow!" Odessa brushed her head only to have a chick come squeaking onto her desk. Odessa smiled, "That hasn't happened in years. I think I'll send you to Hastings along with my limerick." She folded the parchment into an airplane and put the chick on top of it. She performed a quick binding spell and sent it off to Hastings' desk. _Hmmm, Hastings said she'd write to me, I wonder what happened? I hope she doesn't turn the chick into a peep. Oh well, I suppose we must all be eaten at sometime in our lives._ Odessa went back to filling in the report on her desk that she had been studiously ignoring for the past hour.

Odessa had barely finished filling in the date when something pointy hit her in the head. She turned and found a paper airplane doing cork screws like muggle Air Force planes, and then finally landing in a nose-dive onto her desk. Odessa opened the letter and smiled at her friend's hastily scrawled note, picked up her handbag and left her work unfinished. Her pocket watch said quarter to five, she'd just start her weekend early, no one would care.

Hastings walked up and down the corridor of the Department of Mysteries as she waited for Odessa, thinking about which drink sounded better after this long week. Soon enough, Hastings saw Odessa walking down the hallway, her heels clicking as she went, gathering her robes about her securely in preparation to go outside.

"It's hot out today," said Hastings.

"It was cold this morning, Haste," said Odessa. "Forecast said to expect rain."

"Don't tell me you believe those muggle news shows," said Hastings as they walked down the hall towards the exit.

"Sometimes they're right," said Odessa. "What did you think of the limerick?"

"What's a Tart-y?"

"I dunno," said Odessa. "I had to find something else to rhyme with party and farty." Odessa reached out and pushed open the door. A gust of wind slammed it back in her face.

"I think the muggles got it right today," Odessa said, pushing the door open again and battling her way outside. "Why aren't we apparating again? Oh wait, I remember now, someone had to go and break the rules." Odessa glanced at Hastings. "Whatever possessed you to apparate into that poor muggle's car?"

Hastings smiled, "You forget that I was disguised as a troll at the time. And, if you must know (even though I've already told you a thousand times) he was rude to me and I thought he deserved a good lesson."

"But they modified his memory, so what did you teach him exactly?"

Hastings shrugged her shoulders, "For a few hours he learned that when you give someone the finger needlessly that there are consequences."

"Like a suspended apparating license…"

"It's only for another month."

Odessa smirked, "And until then we have to rely on muggle forecasts – which you obviously ignored this morning. No matter, here's The Leaky Cauldron." Odessa opened the door and they hurried in.

"Good evening, ladies," said Chris, the bartender. "I'm guessing a low-fat Butter Beer for Odessa and a Magical Mayhem for you, Hastings."

"You know us too well, Chris," said Odessa.

As Chris went about making their drinks, Ode and Haste found a table and sat down. "Are you up for Quality Quidditch Supplies after?" asked Hastings, removing her cloak.

"We go there every week," said Odessa. "They're never going to lower the price of the Cleansweep 11. Get over it already."

"But I'm tired of walking everywhere," said Hastings. "And port keys are hard to come by since the ban on enchantment of muggle artifacts."

"Then we'll get some floo powder," said Odessa. "You're saving up for new dress robes, remember?"

"Oh, that bloody ball," said Hastings. "Do you have a date yet?"

"The less said on that subject the better," said Odessa with a blush. "What about you?"

"I never have dates for these things, you know that," Hastings grinned.

"You could always ask Chris," said Odessa.

"He just got out of Hogwarts last year, Ode, he's barely 18."

Odessa laughed. "Remember when we were sixth years and he was a first year?"

"Yeah, nearly wet his robes the first time he met Hagrid Junior," said Hastings.

"I thought I'd die laughing." Odessa said fondly. "You know, Hagrid Jr. is even bigger than Hagrid now."

"I know, who'd thought it possible? Oh, thank you Chris."

"You're welcome ladies," he said as he sat the drinks down. "And don't think I don't know what you're talking about. You forget that my parents are muggles and in my experience giants only existed in fairy tales." Chris gave them a wink and walked away to tend to some people who had just walked in.

"Hastings!" Odessa whispered, nudging her in the ribs.

"What?"

"It's Falcon Puddinghaste. You should go to the ball with him! You've liked him since fourth year and don't tell me you no longer like him. I caught you doodling his name in hearts the other day."

Hastings blushed, "I'm not asking him to the ball. He's a nitwit."

"And a very handsome one at that."

"But, let's get real," said Hastings. "Hastings Puddinghaste? I can't think of a worse last name."

"But you sure think a lot of him," said Odessa.

"Read my lips, Ode. He's. A. Nitwit."

"Prefect our fifth year," said Odessa."

"Shut up," said Hastings, taking a big drink from her Magical Mayhem."

"Head Boy…" said Odessa.

"I'm not listening…"

"Outstanding on ALL his NEWTs, and team captain for Gryffindor."

"You forget that he was a beater and took about thirty bludgers to the head our fourth year. Never been the same since."

"He's smart, Hastings. And… I happen to know he's got a rather big crush on you." Odessa made dreamy eyes and took a large sip from her butter beer.

In spite of herself, Hastings smiled, "Do you really think so?"

"That's what he told Harry Weasley," said Odessa.

"That geek?" asked Hastings. "He's always got his head stuck in a book—did when we were at school, still does now. Takes after his mum, they say. He doesn't know which way's up, let alone who likes whom… Geez, I feel like we're teenagers, talking about all this."

"Well, we're not teenagers, but we're not old maids either! At least not yet anyway. It's time to take some action and –"

"I don't want to take action," Hastings interrupted. "Especially not your type of action."

"Stop being a fuddy-duddy," Odessa said. "You know…I wonder…"

"Wonder what," Hastings asked, looking worried. Odessa muttered a few words under her breath and waved her wand. Hastings gasped and ducked as a rain cloud formed over her head and started raining on her.

"Oh no! Why Hastings, I'm SO sorry I…" Odessa paused to wave Chris away who was coming over to help. "I can't imagine what went wrong, oh my!" By now everyone was looking in their direction. Hastings groped for her wand but couldn't find it.

"You took my wand!" She whispered angrily to Odessa.

Odessa just smiled sweetly before turning around, "Falcon! Over here. I could use your help." Falcon looked up and smiled, making his way over to her. "Can you believe what I just did?" Odessa asked, motioning to Hastings. "I can't figure out how to stop it – I was just trying to show Hastings a new hairstyle and," Odessa shrugged, "well, anyway."

"Still having trouble with spells after all these years?" he asked as he pulled out his wand and quickly stopped the storm and cleaned up the glitter.

Hastings glared at Odessa before turning and thanking Falcon.

"It's no problem," he said. "I'm glad I could help."

"Please, let me buy you a drink," Odessa waved Chris over before Falcon could protest. "So, what have you been up to lately? Any interesting cases at St. Mungo's?"

"Well, there always are you –"

"Oh my!" Odessa interrupted him. "I just sloshed butter beer all over myself. I'm just going to run over to the bathroom and clean up. Please, keep talking, I'll only be a minute," and in a flurry of robes, Odessa disappeared.

Falcon watched her as she left, then pulled up a chair and sat on it. "Odessa, she's… a little clumsy today, huh?" he asked.

Hastings laughed nervously and said, "Well, her last name is Grace, you know… makes perfect sense."

Falcon laughed, asking "Are you going to the Hogwarts reunion ball?"

Hastings stared at him in disbelief, unsure of what to say. Before she could think, she said, "Yes… but I'm going alone."

Falcon looked at her with wide eyes, but then his mouth widened into a grin. "Fancy that," he said. "So am I."

"Well, I guess I'll see you there," said Hastings.

"Are you apparating?"

"Well," said Hastings, "I have a suspended license."

"You? You never did a bad thing in your life," said Falcon. Hastings proceeded to tell him why she'd gotten the suspension. "Looks like he deserved it, then," said Falcon. "Meanwhile, how are you getting to the ball? It's tomorrow night."

"I'll think of something," said Hastings. "Maybe floo powder."

"That can seriously mess up your dress robes," said Odessa, who had just returned from the bathroom.

"Well, I suppose I could…" Hastings began.

"Why don't you come with me?" asked Falcon. "I just got the Hell-Fire three with side cart." Suddenly, he blushed, "I mean, if you want to…"

"You should," said Odessa. "That'd be great. Now I can apparate without feeling guilty."

"What do you say?" asked Falcon.

"Ummm," Hastings stared into her glass for a few minutes, "Okay. Yeah. That'd be nice."

"Great. I'll pick you up at 7:00 then."

"Great."

"I suppose I'll see you tomorrow night."

"Yeah, tomorrow," Hastings tried to keep the stupid grin off of her face.

"I'll see you tomorrow as well Odessa. Be careful with that wand. I don't think Flitwick has ever forgiven you for turning his nose into a rat."

Odessa shrugged sheepishly, "It's not my fault that my Charms and Transfiguration spells somehow get mixed up. Besides, I'm sure it'll make me rich one day."

"Uh, huh." Falcon said disbelievingly, walking out the door."

"Odessa Cinnamon Grace! I could kill you!" Hastings said as soon as Falcon was gone.

"You know you love me. Besides, you better love me or I'm keeping your wand."

"How'd you get that out of my pocket anyway?"

Odessa smiled, "My grandfather and Mundungus Fletcher were the best of friends, right up to my grandfathers death. Granddaddy passed his skills onto me. I thought I told you that. Anyway, how do you think I was always so successful in getting the ingredients we needed for the potions we used to slip into people's drinks at school?"

"I just thought you schmoozed the professor," Hastings replied.

"Well, just because I was the best in the class…"

"And so humble. You know I'm going to get you back."

Odessa shrugged, "I know. But I think you'll have such a good time with Falcon that you'll forgive me. Besides, you look cute with wet hair."

"I can't believe Falcon helped you."

"Stop acting all surprised. Of course he did! You're here. Besides, we were friends at school. You were always just too shy to talk to him. Now, we better go, you have a date to the ball tomorrow night."

"And who are you going to go with?"

"Nobody."

"Who do you _want_ to go with?"

Odessa laughed, "Like I'm stupid enough to tell you that. Here's your wand. I'll see you tomorrow night at 8:00." Odessa took a last swig of her butter beer and apparated. Hastings slowly gathered her stuff up and made her way to the fireplace. _I'm going to the ball with Falcon!_ Trying not to giggle, she gave Chris 2 knuts to use his floo powder.


	2. Chapter 2

It was 6:45 on Saturday night and Odessa was changing into different dress robes for the third time. "Hey Ode!" she heard from the den. She pulled on a blue set of robes and ran into the den. "Are you there?" She looked toward the fire place and saw Falcon Puddinghaste's head in the flames.

"Hi, Falcon, what are you doing here?"

"Just here to ask what you're wearing. Weasley can't decide what color to change your corsage into."

"How sweet," said Odessa. She looked down at her robes, and said, "Blue, I guess."

"I'll let him know," said Falcon.

"He's still your roommate?" asked Odessa.

"Yeah," said Falcon. He and Sirius Potter. Helps to save money, you know?"

"I hear you," said Odessa. "You know, I shouldn't be telling you this… but Hastings has a mad crush on you."

Falcon's ears got read, but he smiled and said, "I know, it's kind of obvious."

"And you like her, I hear… That's what Harry says, anyway."

"I like her fine, but…"

"What is it?" asked Odessa, twirling her wand in her hair.

"She's sort of… wild, isn't she?"

"Ah, yes, the studious, serious Medi-Wizard can't stand to have a girlfriend who's a little on the spontaneous side, can he?"

"It isn't that," said Falcon. "I love the way she is. It's just… I don't know if she thinks I'm too… boring for her."

"Believe me," said Odessa. "She thinks the world of you."

"Wouldn't she be better with someone like Longbottom?"

"Neville Junior?" asked Odessa. "The kid who keeps his wand behind his ear and reads the Quibbler like it's fact?"

"He's not that weird anymore, you know," said Falcon. "He works for Weasley's Wizard Wheezes Corporation. Multi-million Galleon enterprise, you know. And he's really funny and adventurous."

"Falcon, why don't you just ask her if she likes you?" asked Odessa. "And leave me be… I have to finish my makeup before I meet Harry at the Leaky Caldron to go to Hogwarts for the reunion."

"Okay," said Falcon. "Thanks for the advice. You look nice tonight, by the way."

"Thanks," said Odessa. "I'd say the same, but I can only see your head."

"Holy Dumbledore! It's 6:55… I'm going to be late! See you later, Odessa." Falcon popped out of the fire.

Hastings sat on the sofa by her front door dressed in an elegant black dress with matching velvet cape, inlaid with blue satin. She pointed her wand at her nails to change the color every few moments, and looked casually at the clock. 7:05. He was late. Not that Hastings was surprised. She felt that Falcon had only asked her because he felt pressured. Hastings felt sick to her stomach, and suddenly wished she'd said she wasn't going. Wouldn't it be nicer to take a bath tonight?

She'd almost decided to change her dress robes into a comfy jumper and sweat pants when there was a knock at the door. Taking a deep breath, she opened it up. Falcon stood there in black dress robes with a gardenia in his hand.

"Wow, you look stunning! I mean, I got this for you." Falcon handed her the flower.

"Thanks." Hastings said, trying not to beam. "You look really nice as well."

Falcon smiled and offered his arm, "Shall we?"

Taking the proffered arm, Hastings allowed herself to be led to his broom.

"Here's a helmet and goggles. I hope you like going fast."

"I do!" Hastings said, settling in. "But I didn't take you for the type to go very fast."

"Are you kidding? Sirius and I were great friends growing up. His dad used to play Quidditch with us during the summer. And you know Harry Potter's the best player there ever was."

"Well, I wouldn't say the best. Oliver Wood's a great player as well."

"Yeah – but nothing like Potter. You don't really think Wood's better than Potter?"

Laughing, Hastings assured him that she did in fact think that Wood was better than Potter. They debated the topic the whole way to Hogwarts.

Landing smoothly on the ground, Falcon helped her out. "Ready to go?"

Smoothing her robes, Hastings nodded. "I wonder who Odessa's going with."

"I think you'll be surprised."

"You know?"

"Yup."

"How?"

"He's one of my roommates."

Hastings glanced at him, "Well, I know that Sirius is your roommate, but Odessa and he broke up a few months ago. You have another roommate?"

"Yup. But I don't think Sirius is entirely over Odessa, so it should be an interesting evening."

"Indeed, because I think Odessa still likes Sirius. So who's the poor schmuck caught in between?"

"I'm sure you'll find out in a minute," Falcon said, escorting her up the stairs and into the Great Hall.

Hastings walked in and spotted Odessa flirting with Harry Weasley. "Excuse me for just one moment please," Hastings said to Falcon before making her way across the room. She snagged Odessa by the arm and dragged her up the stairs into the girl's bathroom. There was water on the floor, as was usual for Moaning Myrtle's favorite haunt, and they stepped gingerly over to the sinks. "You little brat," said Hastings. "You didn't tell me you were going with Harry."

"Well," said Odessa. "I didn't think I had to… I knew you'd tear the mickey out of me."

"You bet I will," said Hastings. "He's such a bloody goob. How could you?"

"Let me tell you a secret," said Odessa. "Sirius is going to be here tonight, you know? I… kind of want him to see Harry and me together."

"That's so mean, Ode!" said Hastings, who always felt sorry for the underdog, even if she didn't think much of him.

"Look, Harry doesn't like me, either," said Odessa. He's positively smitten over Lassie Longbottom. Always has been. We're sort of… using each other for… similar ends."

"Loony Lassie?" asked Hastings. "Now, they're a pair that go together, if ever there was one. We used to have her, Neville Junior, and their parents Neville Senior and Luna over for dinner. I couldn't stand Neville Jr. and Lassie. Still can't stand Junior, come to think, no matter how rich he is. Well, as long as you're not being mean to Weasley. He's not a bad guy, you know."

"I know he's not. We'll probably be friends for years to come," said Odessa. "But for the time being… he's a means to an end."

"An end called Sirius," said Hastings. "and a nice rear end on that one too…"

""Shh! Let's go back out there."

As they walked out of the bathroom, Moaning Myrtle bawled, "Fine! Don't say hi to me. I see how it is."

"Hi, Myrtle," said both women as they walked out the door.

"I wonder who's DADA teacher this year," said Hastings. "I miss it here. I wish I could've stayed longer, but you know, what with the curse…"

"You could have come back," said Odessa. "The curse has been broken ever since Voldemort was killed. It was a fluke that you fell from the tower and broke every bone in your body."

Hastings snorted, "Yeah right! I'm telling you, it wasn't an accident."

"First," Odessa said, crossing her arms, "The DADA Teacher before you was here for eight years. Second, you were alone on the tower looking at the stars. Why you listened to Firenze is beyond me – Centaurs never make any sense. But I can't imagine that anyone else was very interested in the way Mars and Venus were crossing each other – thus, once again, you were up there alone. Besides, I bet McGonagall would give you your position back. Harry introduced me to the new DADA teacher – think of a female version of Gilderoy Lockhart. How my dad used to make me laugh with stories about him! Needless to say, I think McGonagall would take you back in a heartbeat. Besides," Odessa paused for a moment. "she's offered me a position as the Potions teacher. She knows I always I wanted it, but it was never open. But Professor Head-up-His-Butt-"

"Just because he didn't give you an O on your final exam…" Hastings interrupted.

"Even though I received an O on the Newts…fine, Professor O'Reilly is finally retiring. Professor McGonagall said I was the first person she thought of. Please Hastings? You know you want to!"

Hastings smiled, "I know I do, but…"

"And you recovered in a few days, and there really is no curse. Just bad luck. My clumsiness rubbed off on you for the day. It was bound to happen."

"Okay, okay, I'll speak to Professor McGonagall – I promise!" She added, seeing Odessa opening her mouth. "But for now, you need to figure out what to do. Sirius is headed this way."


	3. Chapter 3

Odessa's heart began to pound in her chest as she saw the tall, thin man with short, spiked black hair, and thought he looked more handsome than she'd ever seen him. He wore forest green dress robes and walked toward them like he was strutting, staring straight into Odessa's eyes with a knowing look.

"Ode," he said in his soft, almost sinister sounding voice. "Long time. I guess Weasley's the lucky guy now, huh?"

"Sirius," said Odessa stiffly.

"How's it going, Sirius," Hastings said loudly. "We were just talking about—" Odessa elbowed Hastings in the arm. Grimacing, she said, "I'll just go see where Falcon's run off to. Hastings walked toward the other end of the great hall where she saw Falcon holding a punch cup and talking to a crowd of girls they'd graduated with ten years ago. In a huff, she shoved into the crowd and took possession of his arm, looking at the other women triumphantly.

"Hastings doesn't like him talking to other girls," Sirius observed.

"She's liked him since we were kids," said Odessa.

Sirius nodded. "I understand wanting to have someone all to yourself." He looked at her hard, and held out his hand. "You don't really want to dance with Weasley, do you?"

Tempted for only a moment, Odessa was about to take his hand. But at the last moment, she said, "I went with him, Sirius. I'm not going to ditch him. If you wanted to be with me, you should have asked me. You shouldn't have broken up with me in the first place. Why don't you go talk to Chantrell Finnegan? She misses you, I think."

Odessa turned her back on him and walked toward Harry Weasley, proud of herself, and cursing herself at the same time; why did she like the man? She opened her mouth to ask Harry to dance but then noticed he was not alone. Lassie was hanging onto his arm and every word as though he Dumbledore himself. Disgusted, Odessa headed towards the punch bowl and saw Sirius smirking at her while he flirted with Chantrell. Not to be outdone, Odessa scanned the room and saw Gary Thomas standing by the wall alone. Smiling, Odessa sauntered over to him, hoping that Sirius was watching her every move.

"Do you really think that I should? It seems kind of mean." Hastings looked up at Falcon.

"Trust me, it's not mean. McGonagall would be so grateful. She has every reason to fire Professor Dimmel, but no one to replace her. Besides, what could be better than working with me, Odessa _and _Sirius?"

"That's right," Hastings said, "I forgot that Sirius is the Transfiguration teacher. He's been here for awhile now, hasn't he?"

Falcon nodded, "Yup. He's the one who told me the nurse was taking a sabbatical and encouraged me to apply. He knew it wasn't something I wanted to do for the rest of my life, but a year would be some great experience under my robe. And working with Sirius would be a blast. And now that you and Odessa would be here – fantastic!"

"I'm not so sure." Hastings said slowly.

"Why not?"

"Because, from the looks of it, Odessa and Sirius are only seconds away from cursing each other."

Glancing behind him, Falcon saw Odessa dancing with Gary and Sirius dancing with Chantrell. With a nasty glance at Odessa, Sirius bent in and kissed Chantrell. Not to be outdone, Odessa pulled out her wand and cursed the floor. Hastings watched, amused, as Sirius and Chantrell fell over.

"Which spell was that?"

"Probably one she made up," Hastings said. "Sadly, ever since Odessa and Sirius broke up, she's had nothing better to do than to refine curses more to her liking. Unfortunately for Sirius, all of the refining has been done with the goal of getting back at him."

"I see. Well then, it should be an interesting year. Sure you want to miss it?"

Hastings smiled, "I think I'll go speak with Professor McGonagall right now. Would you excuse me please?"

"Of course," Falcon said. "There's plenty to keep me amused at the moment." He gestured towards Chantrell and Sirius, who seemed to have become stuck to the floor as Odessa sailed by gracefully in the arms of Gary.

Professor McGonagall was sitting at the head table, deep in discussion with Professor Binns, the ghost history teacher. McGonagall looked bored with the conversation and was drumming her fingers on the table, but Binns didn't seem to notice. Hastings sauntered up to the table and gave them both a big smile. Professor McGonagall looked at her and returned her smile. She still had the same horn rimmed glasses, and hair in a tight bun.

"Good evening, Miss Applespice," said the Headmistress.

"Good evening, Professor McGonagall," said Hastings.

"Has it really been four years since you were here last?"

"It has," said Hastings.

"I see you've healed up well," said the professor.

"Yes, I had a good Medi-Wizard. Your new school nurse, as a matter of fact."

"Oh, yes, Mr. Puddinghaste has been a God-send," said McGonagall, still making small talk. "You've been doing well at the Ministry of Magic, I hear?"

"Yes," said Hastings. "Not something I would like to do forever, but…"

"Would you care to take a walk with me?" asked McGonagall.

"Certainly," said Hastings. McGonagall looked eager to be stealing away from Binns's conversation, and the two ladies walked toward the front entrance.

Once there, McGonagall hugged Hastings tightly. "It's been ever so long," she said.

Taken aback, Hastings said, "Well, I missed you too, Prof—"

"Oh, enough of that," said McGonagall. "Call me Minerva, Hastings. We were never so formal before you left—which, by the way, I was sad to see. Defense Against the Dark Arts hasn't been the same since. And don't tell me you actually like working in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office."

"Well, now that you mention it…"

"Because," continued Professor McGonagall, "If you're interested, Professor Dimmel will be leaving us next year."

"Professor Dimmel?" asked Hastings in feigned surprise. "I thought she was around for the long haul."

"Oh, no, that nitwit?" said the Professor. Hastings laughed, and so did McGonagall. "I trust you will tell no one I just said that."

"Of course not, Minerva," said Hastings. Sharing a laugh with her old Headmistress made Hastings long for the old days, remembering how she'd always thought of Professor McGonagall as a surrogate mother or grandmother. "I sure wouldn't mind coming back," she said.

"Oh, would you?" asked McGonagall. "It would mean the world to me and the other teachers. As well as some of the upper-classmen who miss you after an absence of four years."

"I would need to give notice," said Hastings.

"Already done," said McGonagall.

"Really? How did you…"

"I had a hunch you'd be willing to come back," said the professor. "And your personal belongings will be sent here straight away. You will live in the Teacher's dormitories as of this evening."

"But what about—"

"Miss Grace, Mr. Puddinghaste, and Mr. Potter have already agreed to stay as well. Everything has been settled, now that you have decided to join as well."

"Why, I don't know what to say!" said Hastings. In answer, after considering the things she might say, she pulled McGonagall into another hug, a big smile on her face.

Odessa scowled into her drink trying to figure out why Sirius would ask Chantrell to the ball. Sure she was tall, and thin, with long, silky black hair and a perfect figure, but she wasn't fun, she wasn't all that bright and she was only good for…well Odessa didn't want to think about the only thing she was good for. "Tramp," she muttered into her cup.

"I hope you don't mean me," a voice said behind her.

Jumping, Odessa turned around to find Hastings laughing at her.

"Well, you are a tramp, but no, I wasn't referring to you this time." Odessa smiled, "Did you speak with Professor McGonagall?"

"I did. And she had already given the Ministry my notice. Sly old lady, that one."

"Indeed." Odessa said. "Are you moving in tonight?"

"Yes. But the term just ended. I can't believe Professor Dimmel's moved all of her stuff out already."

"Actually, she moved out last week."

"How do you know that?"

Odessa smirked, "Let's just say a certain Transfiguration teacher broke her heart when he wasn't interested in her after he broke up with me. Something about her nose being to big."

"You're kidding!"

"Yes, I am. She was showing some first-years how to ward off some kind of creature and one of the students accidentally hit her with the spell. Falcon cited patient-medi-wizard confidentiality and wouldn't tell me what happened, but it was bad. I'm sure you can find out when the students return this fall."

"I'll have to remember to keep my guard up. So, had you always planned to move in tonight?"

Odessa shook her head, "No. I was going to move in next week. Professor McGonagall sent me an owl this afternoon asking if I would mind coming out early and help with some cleaning and stuff. Nothing big. Since House Elves were finally granted free status this year, McGonagall thought she'd give them sometime off during the summer. They protested of course so I have a feeling that I won't be doing much. But she wanted me here just in case they decide to take some time off. I was speaking with Falcon about it earlier and he volunteered to help as well. And then we volunteered you and Sirius – since we're all rather young compared to the rest of the staff." Odessa grinned. "I hope you don't mind."

"No, that's fine." Hastings said. "How're things with you and Sirius?"

"That cad? Just fine. How are things with Falcon?"

"Going well. I feel like I've known him for years."

"You _have_ known him for years, you just rarely spoke to him," Odessa pointed out.

"You know what I mean. He…he's great."

"Well, I'm glad to hear it. And speaking of Falcon, go find him and spend your evening with him, not me. This cup of punch and I were having a wonderful time until you walked up."

"Are you sure?"

"I insist."

Hastings smiled, "Thanks Odessa. Have fun with your punch."

"I will. Trip Sirius for me if you see him."

"Sure thing!" Hastings left in search of Falcon.

"Might as well go unpack my bags," Odessa mumbled, scanning the dance floor and spotting Chantrell and Sirius together. "Not too much going on here." Tossing her cup, Odessa made her way to her new room.


	4. Chapter 4

The teachers' dormitories were in a rear, corner turret of the castle, far away from each of the house dormitories. Each was equipped with secret passages that led to their private offices and their assigned house common rooms. Each teacher had a separate bedroom, with a common room much in the style of the house common rooms, but even more comfortably furnished, and fully stocked with food and drink choices. Each room had its own bathroom, the size of which rivaled the Prefects bathrooms, each with its own large bathtub. Odessa felt like she'd made it big to come here after over-paying rent in a small flat in Cheapside, but nothing prepared her for the warmth she felt when she opened the door and found her trunks already arrived. "House Elves," she said with a smile, "You can free them, but you can't take the servant out of them." She wondered if the head of the Ministry Department of S.P.E.W., Hermione Weasley, realized how hard it is to free someone that doesn't want to be freed.

Odessa hung up her robes in a large, walk-in closet, and magically arranged her books on a shelf above her bed, realizing that the majority of her summer would be dedicated to writing new curriculum. As good as Odessa was with Potions as a young witch in training, and as much as she enjoyed potion making, she remembered that her classes when she was a student at Hogwarts were beyond boring, and she wanted to make them more interesting.

She was just going over some thoughts about fun activities she'd have the students do when there was a knock at her bedroom door. "Come in!"

Much to Odessa's surprise, Professor O'Reilly walked in. "Pro-professor! What are…I mean, um, hello. It's good to see you."

"Miss Grace," Professor O'Reilly said, walking in. I see you've already started to unpack."

"Yes sir. Professor McGonagall told me you left a few days ago. Did you forget something?"

"No. I just wanted to see how you liked your new quarters."

"They're lovely, thank you. Um, is that all?"

O'Reilly meandered over to the couch and sat down, "Come Odessa, let's have a talk."

"A talk?"

"Yes, a talk. As I remember, you only received an E on my final exam."

Bristling with anger Odessa responded, "But I received an O on my NEWTs."

"So you did. I always wondered about that."

"Just what are you implying sir."

O'Reilly gave her a grim smile, "I was always under the impression that you flirted your way to that O. Who did you have to charm? You are very charming, of course. Not a trait usually seen in a Ravenclaw. But you could never charm me, you know."

Odessa was about to respond when another knock sounded at her door.

"Come in." She said angrily.

Sirius walked through the door. "Odess- Professor O'Reilly, what are you doing here?"

"Giving a few tips to our latest Potions master. And what are you doing here?"

"I just came to…to make sure Odessa found her room okay." Sirius glanced at her. "Obviously she has." He added wryly.

"Obviously," O'Reilly said. "I'll be watching your work Odessa. I may be retiring, but I still care about the students. I'll see you around." He nodded at Sirius and walked out the door.

"What was that creep doing here?" Sirius demanded and then held up his hand. "Wait, never mind. I don't want to know. Good night Odessa." Sirius stalked out of the room before Odessa could say a word.

"I hope Hastings evening is going better than mine," she said as she sank into a chair.

Hastings evening was, in fact, going along quite well. She'd gotten a new job, a new place to live, and a date on the same night. And not just any date—a date with someone she'd been in love with for several years. Or at least liked fairly seriously. She enjoyed her time with Falcon, dancing and meeting old schoolmates, and talking their heads off. She remembered Falcon to be shy and quiet, but she supposed that was only because she was so bashful when she was around him in the past. Now that she'd decided to get to know him better, he was more than willing to talk with her.

Around eleven, many of the reunion-goers began to disperse, and Falcon said, "May I escort you to your dormitory?"

Hastings almost giggled at his question, feeling like a teenager. "Sure," said Hastings, with a flutter in her stomach. They said their goodnights to everyone, and headed out the door into the foyer. It happened almost before Hastings realized it. She watched as Professor O'Reilly came from the teachers' dormitories, walking down the stairs. He to miss the vanishing step, tenth up from the bottom, and ended up falling the rest of the way.

Letting go of her hand, the Medi-Wizard in Falcon took over. He rushed to where Professor O'Reilly lay on the marble floor, clutching his ankle, and cursing under his breath. "Professor, are you all right?" asked Falcon, bending down to assist him.

"Leave me be, Puddinghaste," said O'Reilly with understandable frustration. He looked up and said, "Oh, you're the new school nurse, aren't you?"

"Yes, sir," said Falcon. "Can I help you?"

"I broke my ankle, what do you think?" said O'Reilly. "I remember you were one of the ones laughing at the teachers when they tripped on that particular step."

"Oh, well," said Falcon, trying to sound light-hearted. "That was years ago, sir. I promise I'm not laughing at you now. Why, only last week, I myself tripped—"

"Stop your incessant chatter, boy, I'm twice your age," said Professor O'Reilly. "Are you going to help me to the hospital wing and mend me or not?"

"Oh, yes, sir," said Falcon. He helped the man up and gave Hastings and apologetic look.

Smiling back at him, she said, "I'll see you later," and walked toward the teachers dormitories as Falcon helped Professor O'Reilly to the hospital wing.

"So much for my romantic walk home," said Hastings, walking up the many flights of stairs to the teachers' dormitories. Once there, she was happy to see a large fire burning in the grate, and Odessa in a dressing gown, curled up on a sofa reading a book. "Couldn't go to sleep yet?" she asked.

"I wanted to wait for you to get back. Did he kiss you?"

"I can't believe you would ask that," said Hastings, trying to sound indignant.

"Oh, shut up, you'd ask me the same thing," said Odessa. "Now, did he kiss you or not?"

Hastings plopped down on the sofa next to her friend with a tragic sigh. "No, he had to escort that git O'Reilly to the hospital wing."

"What?" asked Odessa. "He was here just a while ago, to ask me how I liked my new quarters. Though, it sounded more like the Spanish Inquisition. What happened to him?"

"He tripped going down the stairs and broke his ankle," said Hastings, using her wand to magically remove her nail polish.

"Pity he didn't break something else," said Odessa, "Like his head. Can you believe that foul little man thought I cheated on my NEWTs? Of all the nerve."

Hastings chuckled, "Don't worry about him. He's not teaching here anymore, remember?"

"And we are," said Odessa. "Can you believe we'll never have to sit in our cubicles at the ministry again? It's like a dream come true. Of course, you've been a teacher here before. You must be totally excited."

"I am," said Hastings. They sat for a half hour longer, and then got up to go to their rooms to sleep. As they began to walk up the stairs, they heard the door open. Looking around, they saw Falcon walk in, yawning.

"I'm just going to go to bed," said Odessa. "I want details!" she whispered, and ran the rest of the way up.

"Hey," Hastings said, trying to sound nonchalant. "How's O'Reilly?"

Falcon shrugged, "He'll live. Hurt his pride more than anything else. Creepy guy though."

"Yeah, Odessa was just telling me that he was accusing her of cheating on her NEWTs."

"You can't cheat on your NEWTs." Falcon said, surprised. "How did he say she accomplished it?"

"Don't know. Odessa didn't say. I hope he doesn't come back."

"Me too," Falcon said.

Hastings started fiddling with her wand, unsure of what to say next.

"Um…" Falcon said.

"Thank you for taking me to the dance, I had a lot of fun." Hastings said quickly.

"Oh, you're welcome. I did too." Falcon made a move towards her and Hastings felt her heart beat faster.

"Er, I'm glad we'll both be teaching here," Hastings blurted out.

Falcon stopped, "Yeah, it should be fun… Well I should get to bed."

"Me too," Hastings said, berating herself for saying something.

"Good night then." Falcon looked unsure of what to do, so he stuck out his hand.

Surprised, Hastings shook it, "'Til tomorrow." Falcon nodded and left. Hastings sat down on the couch and buried her head in her hands.

"It wasn't that bad," a voice said from the stairway.

Hastings head jerked up, "You were listening?"

Odessa shrugged, "Only for a minute. I wanted to see if he had left and you had stayed down here in a cloud of happiness forgetting that I was waiting impatiently upstairs."

"He shook my hand!" Hastings wailed. "I can't believe that's all he did."

Odessa tried to suppress a giggle but was unsuccessful.

"Don't laugh at me! I'm so embarrassed. He was coming towards me like he was going to at least hug me and I had to open my big mouth!"

Odessa just laughed harder.

"Shut up!" Hastings threw a pillow at her. Odessa ducked and grabbed another pillow to throw back at her. In a few minutes pillows were flying back and forth across the room as the girls ran and ducked, trying to get the other. After awhile they sank onto the couch, laughing and trying to catch their breath.

"Thanks Odessa, I feel better."

"Good."

"And…it is rather funny that he shook my hand."

Odessa grinned, "Just think, one day, when you're married, you can talk about your first handshake."

"Oh, shut up you nit. I'm going to bed."

"Me too. Night Hastings."

"Night." Tired, both girls made their way to their rooms.

"So, what happened?" Sirius asked Falcon as he walked in the door of the men's common room.

Falcon groaned and hung his head, "I shook her hand."

"You did what?"

"I didn't know what to do, so I shook her hand. She probably thinks I'm an idiot."

"And rightly so," Sirius said.

"Thanks for the encouragement."

"At least your girl isn't inviting old school masters into her room."

"What do you mean?"

"I went to Odessa's room to apologize for tonight, and there she was, flirting with O'Reilly."

"I doubt that. Hastings said O'Reilly came in and accused Odessa of cheating on her NEWTs."

"Really? Why?"

Falcon shrugged, "I don't know."

"I wonder if she's lying."

"Look Sirius," Falcon said, "just admit that you made a mistake breaking up with her and apologize. I'm sorry will get you far in this world."

"I _was_ going to apologize."

"But then you jumped to the worst conclusion when you saw O'Reilly there and didn't even bother to find out the truth."

"Would you have if she'd cheated on you?" Sirius asked.

"You don't _know_ that she cheated on you. You believed some rumor, most likely false. We both know Odessa wouldn't do anything like that. You should apologize for that as well."

Sirius shrugged, "I don't know mate. I don't know if I want to take the chance again."

"I think it's worth it, but who am I to say. My track record with women is pretty sad. I mean, I go around shaking their hands!" Falcon groaned again.

"Buck up, it'll be fine." Sirius said. "I'm going to bed. Night."

"Not a bad idea, I think I'll follow." Falcon said, making his way to his room, behind Sirius.

The next morning, Sirius woke early and showered, then made his way over to the teacher's lounge. Professors Vector, Flitwick, and Greene were there, talking about Greene's newest Herbology experiments. "Hello," said Sirius.

"Why, hello, young Potter," said the ancient Half-Goblin who was Flitwick. "Welcome back, it's good to see you again."

"Thanks," said Sirius.

"You know, Potter," said Professor Vector. "Your Father and Grandfather were both in my class, as were you, of course. Makes me think I ought to retire what with the young blood on staff."

"Oh, you'll never be old, Professor," said Sirius, flashing her a winning grin. Vector smiled at him fondly, and took a sip of tea.

Just then, Odessa walked in. Seeing Sirius, she changed her mind and was about to go find Hastings when Professor Green said, "Odessa! I'm so happy you are going to be Potions Master! You realize that we'll be collaborating many of our classes, don't you?"

Odessa walked down the stairs, averting her eyes from Sirius, and said, "I'm looking forward to it, Professor."

Sirius folded his arms and asked nonchalantly, "Sleep well?"

Odessa ignored him, then brightened as Falcon walked in. "Good morning, Fal," she said.

"Hi ya, Ode," he said.

"Morning, mate," said Sirius.

"Morning," said Falcon. Looking at Odessa again, he said, "Do you mind if I talk to you a moment?"

"Sure," said Odessa. "Want to take a walk over at the Black Lake?"

"Sounds fun."

Sirius plopped down on a couch and said, "Yeah, have a _marvelous _time, you two. Don't mind me…"

Odessa looked at him with a smirk and said, "Oh, we don't." As they walked down the corridor toward the castle entrance, Odessa said, "I wonder why Hastings isn't up yet. She never sleeps longer than me. She's usually up with the sun."

"Maybe she's around the grounds," said Falcon. "It's a nice day."

Opening the large door, they walked out into bright, warm sunshine, and had to squint their eyes. "I forgot how beautiful Hogwarts is in the summer," said Odessa.

"Yeah," said Falcon. "I really missed this place. Ten years goes by fast, doesn't it?"

"Sure does," said Odessa, as they headed across the grounds toward the Black Lake. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Well… a couple things," said Falcon. "The first is Sirius."

"What about that git?" asked Odessa.

"He really cares about you," said Falcon. Odessa snorted a short laugh. "No, really. He actually thought that you had invited O'Reilly into your room last night."

"Are you crazy?" asked Odessa.

"That's what I asked him," said Falcon. "He doesn't know what he's talking about."

"He probably also still thinks I cheated on him," said Odessa stuffing her hands in her pockets.

"He does," said Falcon. "And if we're not careful, he'll think you and I have something going on."

"Now, that's just ridiculous," said Odessa with a laugh. "What an idiot. What was the other thing you wanted to talk to me about?"

Falcon stopped walking and stared out onto the Black Lake. Eyes glazed over, mouth in a silly grin, he said, "Her."

Odessa smiled, "Why Falcon, I never knew you had a crush on Professor Vector. Isn't she a bit old for you?"

"Oh, shut up. You know who I mean."

"Of course I do. What about…_her_?"

"Well…this is rather embarrassing, but I shook her hand last night."

"So?"

"So? She must think I'm a total idiot. Shaking her hand? What was I thinking. I could have at least hugged her."

"I thought it was rather funny."

"What do you mean thought?"

Odessa gave him a look, "Girls talk idiot. Just like guys. I was rather amused about the whole thing. Cheered me up immensely."

"Brilliant," Falcon groaned. "She was laughing at me."

"Not at you, per se. Well, yes, she was, but in a good way. And only because I laughed first."

"Do you think I have a chance with Hastings?"

Odessa snorted, "She worships the ground you walk on. Has since our fourth year – trust me, you can do no wrong in her eyes."

"Seriously Ode."

"I _am_ being serious. Look, you worry too much. Go back to the lounge. I'm sure Hastings is there by now. She was probably late because she had to make herself pretty for you."

"What about you?"

"I thought the Lounge had an odd odor to it, rather smelly actually. I think I'll stay outside."

"I wasn't kidding when I said Sirius still likes you," Falcon said.

"Perhaps not, but it's up to him to do something about it, isn't it?"

"You're just stubborn."

"I'm right, and you know I'm right. Besides, stubborn can be a good trait. You know that. How many times did my willingness to stick steadfast to a lie keep us out of detention? You were always willing to cave in and tell the truth."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Falcon looked hurt.

"It is when it's my butt on the line." Odessa pointed out. "Of course, if Hastings had been there, you guys probably would have won out. But I could never get her to come with me when you were going to be around. The fact that she's talking to you is a miracle. And if you don't go back to the castle she's going to start thinking she's the worst hand shaker ever and that you don't want to see her again. Go!"

Falcon smiled and headed back towards the castle, "Sure you don't want to come with me?"

"I'm sure!" Odessa called back. "I'm looking forward to my walk."

"Okay, see ya!"

Odessa ambled around the lake, enjoying the sights and sounds the brought back so many fond memories. She had loved being a Ravenclaw, although the others had bored her at times with how much studying they always insisted on doing. The Gryffindors could always be counted on for some fun. That's how she and Falcon had become such good friends, they had a penchant for getting in trouble when they were together. Odessa sighed, she and Sirius had had a lot of fun too. Hastings would always join her when it was just her and Sirius pulling a prank. Hastings had some great ideas of her own – like contaminating the Pumpkin Juice with a giggle potion. The mayhem that caused! And even better, they had never gotten caught. Odessa smiled at the memory.

"I'm glad to see you're alone." Surprised, Odessa turned around to see Professor O'Reilly heading towards her.


	5. Chapter 5

Hastings sat in the corner of the Teachers' Lounge reading "Magical Me" by Gilderoy Lockhart. She'd always found this an amusing book, remembering what she was told as a student about his fraudulent credentials. And for an old guy, he was certainly easy on the eyes. But today, her mind wasn't on the five-time winner of the Witch Weekly Smile of the Year Award. It was on Falcon Puddinghaste, and how embarrassed she felt about their "date" last night.

"Maybe I'm just not meant to be with him," she said softly into her book. "I can't seem to do anything right."

"What's the matter?" asked Falcon, walking up and sitting across from her on an arm chair.

Hastings gasped, wondering what he'd heard. Defensively, she said, "What do you mean what's the matter? Who says anything's the matter? I didn't say anything."

Falcon cocked his eyebrows and said, "I didn't hear you say anything, should I have? You just looked glum. Anything I can do to help?"

Hastings felt even dumber than she had before—if it was possible, and her cheeks turned a brilliant shade of red. "I'm fine," she said, closing her book and laying it on top of a stack of others in front of her. She stood up, and gathered them to her chest, ready to spend the rest of the day in her room.

"What's going on here?" asked Falcon, refusing to be put off. He stood up and followed Hastings as she began to walk away. "I thought we… had a good time last night."

"Sure we did," said Hastings. "It was fun. I'm glad we went. You're a good friend."

"A friend?" Falcon stopped in his tracks with wide open mouth and eyes. Hastings turned around and looked at him.

"Well, sure," said Hastings. "I mean… we get along pretty well…" Hastings didn't say anything more for fear that she would start blubbering like a school girl. She stared resolutely at the floor, suddenly fascinated with a stain on the carpet.

Falcon sighed dejectedly, "Yeah, we do get along rather well." He retraced his steps and plopped down on the sofa, staring into the empty grate.

Odessa's mouth went dry, followed by the rush of saliva one gets at the oncoming of sickness. Apparently he'd been standing in the grove of trees she'd just passed—a place where she and Sirius used to sneak away to their seventh year to have privacy. To see Professor O'Reilly coming from there made her stomach hurt. "Uh, hello," she said.

"Not followed by your entourage today?" asked O'Reilly, his lip curling into a sneer.

"I can't say I know what you mean," said Odessa.

"Especially someone as… lovely as you… to be walking alone." O'Reilly took a step toward her, and she took a step back.

Searching for something to say, something that would defuse the horrible awkwardness of speaking to him alone here, she said, "I see your ankle is better." As she said it, she regretted not keeping her mouth shut.

"I see you and your little friends are still fond of telling you everything about everybody. Gossip gets people into trouble, you know." He almost sneered as he said it, and Odessa couldn't decide whether she'd rather hit him or throw up on him.

Instead, she decided to say, "Word travels fast. I trust you're feeling better?"

"Yes," said O'Reilly. "As hopeless as that boy was in Potions as a student, he seems to have shaped into a rather competent Medi-Wizard."

"Then I trust you'll be on your way soon," said Odessa, sounding as pleasant as she could, but with underlying menace in her voice.

"As it happens," said O'Reilly, equally menacing, "I am even now on my way to Hogsmeade Station to take the 1 o'clock. I simply wished to restate what I hinted at last evening."

"You hinted that I cheated on my NEWTs," said Odessa. "And not very subtly, either."

"Oh, I think you're far to intelligent to cheat outright," said O'Reilly. "But I did sense something clandestine between you and Horrace—"

"Slughorn?" asked Odessa. "He was ancient then! I would never… besides, it's he who used to choose favorites. I would never—"

"The point is," said O'Reilly with a long sigh, placing his hands on his hips, "I don't care why Professor McGonagall hired you. I do not believe you are qualified to teach Potions at this school. You were a trouble-maker as a student, and I don't believe you have the capacity to discipline the students as they need to be."

Odessa folder her arms and stood as tall as she could. "Do I sense resentment, sir?" she asked.

"Not from me," said O'Reilly. "I was happy to retire when I did. I only wish someone with equal competence was taking my place."

"You don't have to worry about that anymore," said Odessa, forcing herself to smile broadly. "Because someone is here who surpasses you in competence. I suggest you go to your train, Professor. No one would be sadder than I if you missed it." She pushed past him, refusing to feel bullied.

He called up after her, "I will be watching you, Grace. I will know if you're not up to par."

Fuming, Odessa slammed open the doors to the teacher's lounge, only to find Hastings and Falcon sitting there, apparently ignoring each other. "Did I interrupt something?"

"Um, no. We were just, um, sitting here." Hastings said, turning red. "What's upset you?"

"O'Reilly! I think he's stalking me. He keeps saying he's going to keep his eye on me because he doesn't trust me with the students, but I think it's something more sinister."

"Like what?" Falcon asked, joining the conversation.

"I'm not sure. Perhaps he's trying to take over the school."

"Through you?" Hastings asked.

"Good point. I forget that I'm only important in my own mind." Odessa smiled wryly. "Anyway, we should find out what it is."

"It'll probably turn out to be nothing," Falcon said. "Just like the time you thought the house elves were planning a revolt."

"It wasn't an unreasonable theory," Odessa protested. "The kippers were off, and they're never off."

"Uh huh," Falcon said, rolling his eyes. "So, what are you ladies up to today?"

"Minerva has asked us to tend to the garden." Hastings replied.

"What about Hagrid Junior?"

"He's taken Minerva up on her offer of a vacation. He's visiting his parents in France." Hastings said. "What are you up to?"

"Sirius and I get to clean the boy's dormitories. I think Professor McGonagall is punishing us for some past wrong, but I can't figure out what that is."

"I can name a few," Odessa said, smirking.

"You were always in more trouble than us." Falcon retorted.

"Not true," Odessa said. "I definitely got away with more than you."

"Prove it," a voice said from behind. Odessa turned to see Sirius standing there, his arms crossed and he mouth turned into a slight smile.

"I will. I bet that Hastings and I can cause more mayhem this week without being caught than you boys."

"Define mayhem." Sirius said.

"Um, guys…" Falcon started, but Odessa interrupted him.

"Who can break the most rules and cause the most things to go wrong _without_ harming anything or anyone. And without getting caught."

"Odessa…" Hastings said.

"Fine, it's a deal," Sirius spoke over Hastings.

"You're going to regret this Sirius."

"I can assure you Odessa, that you will be the only one with regrets." Sirius grabbed Falcon's arm and pulled him out of the room.

"What were thinking?" Hastings asked, standing up.

"That it's time to put Sirius Potter in his place. Come on Hastings, we have work to do." Odessa marched out of the room.

"I thought we were adults now!" Hastings called after her.

"We are, which makes it even better. Don't back down on me now Hastings. You were the mastermind behind at least half of our pranks in school. Now, come on!"

Hastings reluctantly left the teacher's lounge and followed Odessa down the hall.


	6. Chapter 6

"Of course I was the mastermind," said Hastings, resigning herself to the inevitable. "And that's why you so desperately want to be just like me."

"You know it," said Odessa. "Hey, what was up with you and Falcon?"

"Nothing," said Hastings a little too fast. She rounded the corner, heading for the girl's bathroom.

"I can see that," said Odessa, following her closely. "I could cut the 'nothing' between you with a knife!"

"Don't ask," said Hastings. "What about you and Sirius? I know you're rivals, but this is ridiculous. A little mayhem is easy enough to perpetrate, but you should realize that it could get us fired if we're caught."

"But we're not going to get caught," said Odessa, "because you're in charge of it. Now, what are we doing in the girl's bathroom?"

"Hey, Moaning Myrtle! Are you here?" called Hastings. She stomped over to all the bathroom stalls, checking each one. "Oi! Myrtle!"

"What do you want?" asked a shrill voice from the farthest stall.

"Oh, there you are," said Hastings. She opened the final door and they saw Myrtle, sitting in the toilet with her chin resting in her hand, her elbow on the seat.

"Well, nice of you to come see me," said Myrtle sarcastically. "I bet you want something from me."

"Why, Myrtle," said Hastings in her sweetest voice. "Can't we come to see you just because we want to be your friend? I can't believe you'd question our motives like that."

Myrtle stared at Hastings, looking incredulous.

"Okay, we do want something," admitted Hastings.

"I knew it!" shouted Myrtle, and slid down the drain.

"It's about… Sirius Potter," said Hastings. Immediately, Myrtle swooshed up out of the toilet, splashing both women with water, giggling in her high-pitched voice.

She finally settled down on one of the sinks, crossing her legs, and asking in a dreamy voice, "What about Mr. Potter?"

"Yeah, what about Mr. Potter?" asked Odessa.

"Shh!" Hastings said to Odessa. "Look, Myrtle. I know you've always had a… soft spot for the Potter men…"

"Who doesn't?" asked the school-girl ghost. "Black hair..." she tightened her braided pig tails. "Glasses!" She pulled hers off and cleaned them on her drenched sweater, then replaced them. "What's not to love?"

"Well," said Hastings, "I happen to know that Sirius has a… er… serious crush on you. He told me that he didn't want to tell you—or ever admit to it—but that if you were to follow him around all day and all night, spending your time with him, telling him… telling him how you felt… he's be grateful… and he'd find some hope in that."

Myrtle seemed to think for a moment, then said, "You'd better not be tricking me!"

"Oh… of course not," said Odessa, catching on. "And he said that he'd like to spend all night talking to you—he said sleep is for the weak. Tosses and turns all night as it is… it's pretty pathetic, actually."

"Well, I just might take you up on that," said Myrtle, looking moony-eyed.

Both women said goodbye to Myrtle and stepped out of the bathroom, trying to hide gales of laughter. "That was brilliant," said Odessa.

"It was one of my finer moments, wasn't it?" asked Hastings. "Now we just have to wait to see what happens when she follows him around all night, not letting him sleep." Giggling, the girls made their way to the garden.

"This is so childish Sirius," Falcon groaned. "What on earth were you thinking?"

"That it's time someone brought Odessa Grace down a few notches. What's going on with you and Hastings?"

"Nothing yet. She doesn't make any sense. I think she just wants to be friends."

"Somehow I doubt that. You need to make a move mate. It may not show, but Hastings has a wild streak. You don't want her to get bored with you."

"No, I don't want that. I'll think of something. If she doesn't hate me after this week. What're you planning anyway?"

"An old, yet effective trick."

"Sirius, this is the Ladies' common room." Falcon stopped short.

"Oh really? I hadn't noticed." Sirius said sarcastically. "It's not like we're not allowed in here. Come on!" Sirius and Falcon went into the room and up the stairs.

"Their doors will be locked," Falcon warned.

"Odessa just happens to be the best pick pocket, thief and the very best at breaking and entering of anyone I know. And when we were dating, she taught me a few tricks. Why she never tried to become an auror is beyond me." Sirius pulled out his wand and muttered a few words. Falcon burst into laughter.

"What is it?"

"Your hair has disappeared." Falcon said, trying to regain his composure.

"Clever spell," Sirius said. "Unfortunately for Odessa, that's an old one." With a tap at the lock, the door opened. Walking in, Sirius pulled a bottle out of his pocket and poured half the contents on her sheet.

"What's that?" Falcon asked.

"A potion for bad luck." Sirius said, walking into Odessa's bathroom.

"But the deal is that no one can get hurt."

"And no one will," Sirius said. "I didn't make it to its full strength and they won't be drinking it. Everyone should be fine. And just for good measure…" Sirius poured a little into Odessa's shampoo.

"Sirius!"

Sirius shrugged, "What? A little extra dose never hurt anyone. Besides, I promise not to put it into your dear Hastings' shampoo. Just on her bed." He put the cork into the potion and headed to Hastings' room.

"You promise that no one will get hurt?" Falcon asked Sirius poured the rest of the potion on Hastings' bed."

Sirius shrugged, "Nope. Odessa's the potion master, not me. But I think it'll be fine." Sirius stepped back and surveyed his work. "After sleeping on these sheets tonight the potion will take effect."

"What if they take a shower?" Falcon asked.

"Doesn't matter. It lasts for 24 hours." Smiling, Sirius walked out of the room.

"What were you doing in my room?" Jumping, Sirius and Falcon turned around to see Professor Vector standing there.

"I'm sorry Professor," Sirius said, "Falcon wanted to leave flowers for Hastings as a surprise, but we realized we forgot the flowers. Good thing too, since we went into the wrong room." Sirius smiled apologetically and almost ran out of the Ladies' area.

"That was a lame excuse," Falcon said. "It's not like I can't conjure flowers from my wand."

"Who cares, it worked." Sirius said.

"Yeah, but you cursed Professor Vector along with Odessa."

"Doesn't matter. Like I said, I diluted the potion. Besides, with Odessa cursed, it'll affect Hastings too. You worry too much my friend. Now come, we must tackle the boy's dormitory." Sirius threw his arm around Falcon's shoulder and headed down the hall.

For the rest of the day, Odessa and Hastings worked with Professor Greene in the Gardens, and Falcon and Sirius had the much more disgusting job of scouring the boys' dormitories. On the upside, halfway through some house elves showed up and completed the job, scolding the two wizards for attempting to do it themselves. "I thought you were on vacation," said Falcon, though he was glad to give up his rubber gloves and magical spot remover to an over-zealous house elf.

"That's where we went, sir," said the house elf. For a whole half-hour Blinin and friends sat in the kitchens doing nothing. We can't stands holidays forever, sir!"

Leaving the boy's dormitory, Sirius said, "Come on, lets wash the stench off. I hope we weren't that foul when we were kids."

They headed to the third floor boys' bathroom, passing Moaning Myrtle's domain.

"Hey, remember our third year when Myrtle declared her undying love for you?" asked Falcon. "Hard, considering she's, well, dead…"

"Don't remind me," said Sirius, glancing at the overflowing pool of water as they passed. "Myrtle, humph. What a waste of proto-pl—"

"Darling!" a shrill voice shouted from the girl's bathroom.

"Looks like she hasn't given up, mate," said Falcon with a sly smile.

Sirius shoved him into the boys' bathroom, muttering, "Shut up, Fal."

They began to scrub their hands and faces when suddenly Myrtle's head came out of the sink drain where Sirius was. "What the—" he said. He backed up, cursing and rubbing his eyes, soap having gotten in them. "Get out of here, Myrtle!" He went to another sink to wash his eyes out.

"I've heard something wonderful about you, Sirius Potter," said Myrtle.

"And what would that be, Myrtle?" asked Falcon, smiling and shaking his dripping curly, blond hair out of his face.

"Shove it," said Sirius, drying his own face with a towel.

"I was told that you're in love with me…"

"WHAT!" Shouted Sirius.

Moaning Myrtle continued, "…and to prove my love for you, I will remain by your side for the next 24 hours."

"Who told you that?" asked Falcon, now laughing.

"Two guesses," said Sirius, inching away from the approaching, smiling Myrtle. "I'm going to kill those women." He grabbed the now hysterical Falcon by the wrist and pulled him out of the bathroom, Myrtle in tow.

"WHEN THE MOON HITS YOUR EYE," sang Myrtle at the top of her lungs, following Falcon and Sirius.

"Let's get out of here!" Sirius said. Where can we go that Myrtle can't follow us?"

"LIKE A BIG PIZZA PIE!"

"I dunno, mate," said Falcon, having recovered from the humor of the situation. "She looks serious."

"THAT'S…."

"I can't listen to this all day," Sirius shouted over the din.

"AMORE!"

Both men turned around and shouted, "SHUT UP, MYRTLE!"

Not hindered for even a second, Myrtle changed her tune, singing, "YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE… MY ONLY."

"She's giving me a bloody headache!" yelled Sirius, as they both ran down the hallway.

"SUNSHINE! YOU MAKE ME HAPPYYYYYYYY…"

"Hogsmeade!" said Falcon. "It's the only place!" They ran up the hallway to the statue of the hunchback witch and threw it aside. "Nice of your dad to teach you about this, mate! Comes in handy even as a teacher!" They dived into the secret tunnel and ran until they got to the trap door at Honey Dukes Sweets Shop. Luckily, due to the nature of Hogwarts, Myrtle was unable to follow them.

"Do you think we should stay here all night?" asked Sirius. "She said that she was going to do it for the next 24 hours."

"Sort of like your little 'bad luck' idea," said Falcon. "Let's go get a room at the Three Broomsticks." They stepped out of the Honey Dukes cellar to find the store nearly empty, but for the clerk behind the counter. Luckily, he seemed to be snoozing. They walked carefully over to the door and opened it, sounding the bell that hung from the lentil.

The clerk woke up, saying, "Bless me, have I been sleeping?"

Falcon said, "Oh, yes, sir… We didn't mean to disturb you…"

"Oh, nothing of the sort," said the clerk. "How may I help you gentlemen?"

Not wanting to be suspected for anything odd, Sirius said, "You know, I have a hankering for sugar quills…" Thirty minutes later, both men had half-emptied their pocket change on sugar quills, licorice wands, ice mice, and Berty Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

Walking down the street, under a bright summer sun, chomping on various pieces of candy, Falcon said, "Well, that was nicely handled. Worth it, though… I miss eating this junk."

"What say you to a Butter Beer now, mate?" asked Sirius. They sauntered on into the Three Broomsticks, which unlike Honey Dukes was packed with people, enjoying drinks at their tables. Sirius and Falcon decided to sit at the bar.

The elderly bar mistress, Madam Rosemerta was drying a mug with a cloth. Seeing them, she said, "Well, I'll be a house elf! Falcon Puddinghaste! It's been, what, ten years? You've certainly grown a bit. Nice to see you too, Sirius, how are you?"

"Well," said Sirius. "How are you doing?"

"Can't complain," said Rosemerta. "What can I get you?"

"Two Butter Beers, please," said Sirius.

"Coming right up. What're you doing back, Falcon? Just visiting yer old stomping grounds?"

"No," said Falcon. "I'm the new Hogwarts nur—… er-Medi-Wizard."

"Oh! Well, I knew you had some sense in you," said Rosemerta. "Though you might prefer to have the kids call you by your first name when term starts…"

"I know," said Falcon with a good-natured laugh. "I've never cared for my last name."

Sirius snorted into his beer, "It sounds like a little old woman's name!"

Rosemerta laughed as Falcon hit him in the arm, "At least I'm recognized for my skills and not just my name!"

"I'd rather have fame and good looks rather than a bad name and substandard skills."

"Well that explains why Odessa thinks your such a cad," Falcon said, waving to Rosmerta as she went to tend to other customers. "Speaking of Odessa, I think we should go back tonight."

"Why on earth would we do that?"

"I know Myrtle'll be a pain, but think what those girls could accomplish while we're gone. It might be better to be there and put up with Myrtle than here without knowing what's going on. You may have made this bet, but I'm determined not to lose."

Sirius nodded, "You're right, we should go back. Do you think I can convince Myrtle I'm not interested?"

Falcon nodded, "You've had enough experience, I think so."

"Well then," Sirius said, setting down his empty bottle, "let's head back."


	7. Chapter 7

"He just left!" Myrtle wailed to Odessa and Hastings. "I knew you were making this up. No one cares about poor, miserable, moaning Myrtle!"

"Myrtle, honey, I should have told you something up front and I apologize," Odessa said, reaching out to grab her arm and then remembering that Myrtle was a ghost. "Remember how I dated him back in school?" Myrtle nodded, looking suspicious. "Well, I learned that the more he likes a girl the more obstinate and rude he is until he actually starts to date her. He likes to make girls work for him so that he feels important. You should've heard some of things he told me. He was constantly telling me to bugger off, saying that I was a hag and worse things. If he didn't care about you, he wouldn't say anything. In fact," Odessa paused, trying to look somewhat upset, "he broke up with me because he couldn't get over you."

"Really?" Myrtle preened, "that's why? I thought you cheated on him."

Odessa shook her head, "Oh, no. He said that because he thought you'd find out how he really felt and reject him."

Myrtle smiled and posed a bit, "I always knew that boy had good taste. I suppose I should wait for him to return."

Odessa nodded, "I'm sure he will. Remember Myrtle, persistence is the key." Odessa gave her a smile and then pulled Hastings out of the bathroom.

"That was brilliant!" Hastings said. "Good job!"

"Well, you had the original idea. I just wanted to make sure it continued to be successful. What do you think the boys are up to?"

Hastings shrugged, "Who knows, with them, I mean –"

"Hastings!" Hastings looked up to see Professor Vector waving and smiling. "I just wanted to let you know that Falcon is leaving flowers in your room for you, isn't that sweet?"

Hastings looked shocked, "How do you know?"

"He went into my room by mistake, him and Sirius. I found them coming out. They had forgotten the flowers so he'll probably be back. I thought you should stay away from the dorms for awhile so he can be successful."

"Uh, thanks Professor. I will."

"Have fun girls!" Professor Vector continued her way down the hall.

Odessa turned towards Hastings, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

Hastings nodded. "PRANK!" They sang out at the same time.

"Poor Professor Vector, I have a feeling she'll have a bad night." Odessa said.

"Yup," Hastings agreed. "We should probably go check out our rooms, what do you think?"

"Definitely, but let's wait. I don't want the guys to catch us there this early, they'll know we found out. I hope Sirius didn't transfigure any of our furniture into animals!"

Hastings laughed, "I wouldn't be surprised.

"But knowing him," Odessa continued thoughtfully, "he likes to think he's clever, which means that he'll try to use something that requires either your knowledge of the dark arts or my knowledge of potions."

Hastings nodded, "You're right. I doubt he'd use the dark arts – he could get into too much trouble. I'm thinking potions."

"Yeah. You're probably right. But let's be prepared for our wardrobes to charge us as well. In the meantime, what should we do now?"

Hastings brightened, "I've got the perfect idea!"

"What's your idea?" asked Odessa.

"If they're trying to get at us by using our own expertise against us, we ought to extend the very same courtesy to them. I think a little transfiguration and medical mischief is in order."

"Sounds great, what did you have in mind?"

"Well," said Hastings, "Since you think I'm so brilliant, I'm going to return the complement by asking you to whip up a batch of good old Veritaserum."

"What good would it do to have them spouting the truth?"

"Must I spell _everything_ out for you?" asked Hastings.

"Ha ha," said Odessa, not amused.

"We can get them to tell us how they cursed our rooms. Well, yours and Professor Vector's, that is."

"I'll do it after midnight," said Odessa. "Veritaserum always brews a little better in the wee hours. It won't be as strong though, since I don't have time to go through all of the steps."

"That's fine," said Hastings. "I'll help you. Meanwhile, let's get some sleep, if we're going to be up all night making a truth serum."

"Aren't you forgetting something?" asked Odessa.

"What?" asked Hastings, already heading toward her room.

"You're so scatter-brained, aren't you?"

"What are you going on about, Odessa? I'm tired."

"Too tired to remember why we're making them drink Veritaserum in the first place?"

"Oh, the whole cursed bedroom thing, huh?

"Wow, it's amazing they don't have NEWTs or OWLs in Common Sense. You'd get an Outstanding, for sure." Odessa said with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, pipe down," said Hastings, "You're right though. That could present a problem. Maybe we could talk to Professor Vector about it."

"You mean go up to her and say, 'Hey, Professor, when you saw Sirius and Falcon in your room earlier, did they look like they were performing a curse?' Yeah, that'll go over really well."

"No," said Hastings. "I mean just talk to her and see if anything… odd was going on in her room."

"I suppose it's worth a try," Odessa said.

They found her in the Ladies' common room just after eight, looking through a telescope, pointed straight at the wall.

"Um Professor Vector?" asked Odessa.

"Oh, good evening ladies," said the older woman. "How are you this evening?"

"Just fine," said Hastings. "Er… did you realize that your telescope isn't pointed out a window?"

"Oh, of course I did," said the Professor, taking the telescope off the stand and handing it to Hastings. "Look through yourself, if you'd like. Oh, point it at that picture of Rodolfo the Ridiculous, for best results."

Hastings looked through the glass of the telescope, and almost fell over as she beheld planets, stars, and moons whizzing passed her in rapid succession. "What in the?" Finally, the view in the telescope settled onto a blue and purple planet, surrounded by haze and a sparse asteroid belt. Hastings moved the telescope away from her eyes. "How did that happen, Professor?"

"It's a spell I put on the lens," said Professor Vector. "It makes anything obscuring the view, like a wall and painting in this case, transparent. The same spell that is used to enchant invisibility cloaks."

"That's amazing," said Hastings, handing the telescope to Odessa. As Odessa looked through it (jumping at first, as Hastings had) Hastings asked, "So, Professor… When you saw Falcon earlier… did he say when he'd be back?" She smiled, and even batted here eyes a little to show that she was interested in the prospect of receiving Falcon's flowers.

Professor Vector smiled in return and said, "Ah, young love… No, dear, he didn't say. I suppose there are no flowers in your room then?"

"No, ma'am," said Hastings, acting a little down."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry, dear," said Professor Vector. "The way that man looks at you and talks about you… Actually, come to think… he's probably distracted by you, that's why he's forgetful. Seems he conjured juice instead of flowers when he was there earlier. Said he forgot them, but I think he just didn't want to admit to having spilled something all over my bed."

"Something spilled?" asked Odessa, returning the telescope to Professor Vector.

"Yes, something that smelled sweet. No matter, he was probably distracted."

"You're sure it was juice?" asked Hastings.

"I'm certain I don't know," said Professor Vector absently as she placed her telescope in a long, wooden box with leather clasps. "I sent my comforter to the laundry and had others sent up in the mean time. It was quite damp."

Odessa looked at Hastings, and they both ran up the stairs to Odessa's room. Throwing back the covers, Odessa searched her sheets and blankets for moisture, or a stain. "Nothing," said Odessa.

"I still wouldn't sleep on those, if I were you," said Hastings.

"No kidding," said Odessa. "I'll sleep on the sofa, and send my bedclothes down—might want to have them look at the mattress too."

"Sounds good," said Hastings. Maybe we should check them again. You're the potions expert… can't you smell it to see what it is?"

"Well," said Odessa, "I guess I could try." She walked over to the blankets and sniffed them. "Might be on the pillow case, come to think," she said. She leaned close to the pillow without touching it, and breathed in deeply. She smelled a mixture of lilies with rotten bananas. It was extremely sweet-smelling, and made her almost gag. "Don't touch it," said Odessa. "It's Faustus Malloren."

"What?" asked Hastings.

"What's the opposite of Felix Felices?"

"You mean… Bad Luck Potion?"

"You bet," said Odessa. I used to give it to Slughorn for fun when I was in his NEWTs class."

"Nothing better to do, eh?" asked Hastings with a smile.

"Well, you weren't in potions anymore, I had to have fun some way. Sirius and I used to make it together. Why, that dirty, little, scheming, sack of—"

"So," Hastings interrupted, "Tell me how you really feel."

"Well, at least we noticed it in time," said Odessa. "No reason to give them the Veritaserum now, I guess, huh?"

"I don't know," said Hastings. "I still think you should make it. It would be fun to watch them spout the truth to everyone."

"Well, if you insist," said Odessa. "Now go away so I can get to bed."

"All right, good night," said Hastings, leaving the room.

Before going to bed, Odessa decided to take a shower to calm down. What she didn't notice as she lathered her hair with lavender shampoo was a faint smell of lilies and bananas…

It was Hastings who woke first. "I bet Odessa's still in bed," she said. She rose and put on a robe, then walked through the woman's common room to Odessa's bedroom. Opening the door and walking in, she saw that Odessa wasn't on the sofa, where she said she'd be. "Ode, are you in here?" she asked.

She heard a grumpy moan from beside the sofa. Walking over there, she saw Odessa, rising up off the floor. "What in the…"

"Are you okay?" asked Hastings.

"That's weird," said Odessa. "I must have fallen off the sofa. Probably had a bad dream." She stood and rubbed her head, then yawned. "Well, whatever. Let's just get to making the Veritaserum."

They walked down to the Potions stores to gather the required ingredients. "Don't you need a list?" asked Hastings.

"No," said Odessa. "I make this all the time. I have it memorized. Actually, I have three difficult potions memorized," she said as she placed various bottles in a caldron. "Veritaserum, Polyjuice Potion, and Number 9."

"Wow," said Hastings. "I guess that's why you're the potions master. I can't make tomato soup without it turning blue."

"All a matter of practice, my friend," said Odessa. "Why—" she dropped a bottle of lacewing flies, smashing it on the stone floor and scattering the contents everywhere. "What is wrong with me?" she asked. "I'm never this clumsy with my potions. You don't think they cursed me somehow, do you?"

Hastings took the caldron from her and said, "Come on, Grace, you've always been clumsy. It had to catch on at work eventually. _Scourgify!_" The Lacewing flies flew up into the air, and the glass from the bottle remade themselves landing safe and whole into the caldron.

"Thanks," said Odessa. "I guess that's it. Let's go to the girls' bathroom. Myrtle shouldn't be there since she's paying Sirius a visit tonight.

As Falcon slept soundly, Sirius lay in his bed with his pillow over his head, unable to sleep while Moaning Myrtle serenaded him with love poetry until dawn. Several times in the night, he threw pillows at her, shouting, "Shut up, Myrtle!"

"She said you'd say that," said Myrtle. She said the only thing to do is be persistent, and you'd be bound to love me!"

Sirius pounded his mattress, shouting, "I… am going… to kill… that little…"

"AND I---------EEEEEE------I------EEEEE-----I… WILL ALWAYS…. LOOOOOOOOOVE YOU!"

Odessa had finished concocting the potion and was yawning as she dribbled it, attempting to pour it into a vial. "Well, Miss clumsy," said Hastings, wide awake in her own right. "You should get back to bed. I'll go pay our Mr. Potter and Mr. Puddinghaste a visit. Man, what a stupid name."

"G'night, Hastings," said Odessa, clamoring up the stairs to her bedroom. Hastings walked through the teacher's lounge into the men's dormitory, and up the stairs to Sirius' room. She figured giving him the potion first would make more sense, in case she was caught. She didn't really want to harm Falcon so much. Tiptoeing up to Sirius' door, Hastings pressed her ear against it.

"To love once is to love always/To love always is to love a lot…"

Suppressing a giggle, Hastings decided to pour the potion in their drinks at breakfast – she didn't want to interrupt Myrtle and her quest for Sirius' love.


	8. Chapter 8

"Wake up Hastings," Odessa shook her hard on the shoulder. "Did you give them the potion?"

Hastings rubbed her eyes, "No, Myrtle was busy reciting poetry to Sirius. I thought we could slip it into their coffee this morning."  
Odessa nodded, hitting her head on the headboard, "Ouch," she said, rubbing her head. "That was a rather stupid thing to do. You know Hastings, I'm starting to think they cursed something besides my bed. You better be the one to slip the potion into their drinks, I just don't trust myself to do it today."

"You're imagining things Ode, but I'll be happy too. You cause a distraction of some sort." Hastings grabbed her robe and headed downstairs with Odessa, catching her before she fell down the stairs. They made their way to the men's common room and knocked before opening the door.

"Good morning gentlemen," Hastings said, sitting down. "We thought we'd join you for breakfast. Oh, and I see Myrtle is here as well. Always a pleasure Myrtle." Myrtle grinned at them while Sirius eyed them suspiciously.

"And why would you join us for breakfast?" he asked.

"I think you know why," Odessa said, nodding slightly towards Myrtle.

"I don't think friends need a reason to have breakfast together," Hastings added, before Myrtle suspected something.

"Would you pass me the eggs please?" Odessa asked. Falcon passed it to her, but just as she went to grab it, it slipped from her fingers and crashed to the floor.

"I'm so sorry." Odessa said. "I think I'm clumsier than usual today."

Falcon and Sirius smiled at each other, "Don't worry about it Ode," Falcon said, leaning over to help Sirius clean up the mess. Happens to us all. With a few waves of their wands the eggs righted themselves back on the table. Neither noticed Hastings slipping the potion into their drinks.

"Please, allow me." Sirius spooned some eggs onto Odessa's plate and sat back, sipping his coffee." A knock on the door distracted him.

"Oh, hello ladies, I was wondering where you were," Professor Vector said, walking in. "Minerva wanted to know if you'd mind going to Hogsmeade and picking up a few supplies for her."

"Professor Vector!" Sirius said, jumping up. "You look ravishing today. Please, sit down, have some breakfast." Sirius smiled dumbly at her and gestured towards a chair.

"Thank you, Sirius," Professor Vector said, looking surprised, "But I've already eaten. I was just on my way to tidy up some classrooms."

"Oh! I'll help you! You really do look lovely today."

"Um, thanks Sirius. I could use the help," Professor Vector grinned at him and took his arm. "You look rather nice today as well."

Falcon looked at the girls, "What did you give him?"

Odessa looked shocked, "Um, a little something special to help make his day brighter."

"A little something special?" Falcon picked up his coffee to take a drink but thought better of it. "Like a love potion?"

"We'd better go," Hastings said, grabbing Odessa's arm. "Minerva asked us to go to town." She hurried out of the room, dragging Odessa behind her. Odessa smiled and waved goodbye, knocking several books off the table. "Bye Falcon!" Odessa called out, giggling.

"Did you make a love potion?" Hastings asked as soon as they were back in their rooms, getting dressed.

"Must have. I told you something's wrong with me. I think they cursed me Haste," Odessa grimaced as she tore her robes. "And these were my favorite pair. Would you mind fixing them? I might catch them on fire."

Hastings smiled and repaired the robes for Odessa. "When?"

"I don't know," Odessa said. I took a shower and came out here and…the shower!"

"The shower?"

"What do you want to bet my shampoo's cursed?"

"What about Professor Vector's? She seemed to be doing fine."

Odessa shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe they just put it in mine. Dirty rats."

Hastings grinned, "Speaking of dirty rats, Sirius seems rather taken with Professor Vector, and I don't think she minds. Of course, Myrtle won't be happy."

"I'm not worried about Myrtle. We'll tell her that Falcon slipped a love potion into Sirius' drink because he was concerned with how taken Sirius was with her. Besides, Falcon figured out what we did – even though we didn't know what we were doing. So he'll be busy fixing that."

Hastings nodded, "By the way, great distraction."

Odessa grimaced, "That wasn't on purpose."

"Oh well, it worked. So what should we do next?" Hastings asked.

Odessa grinned, "What do you say we go mix a few of Falcon's potions up?"  
"Odessa! That could hurt someone."

"None of the serious ones, just the ones that don't matter as much. Like the headache potion, and the allergy potion and stuff like that. It won't hurt anybody. We can pick some stuff up at Hogsmeade."

Hastings grinned, "I like how you think."

"I'm so glad. Shall we?"  
"We shall." Hastings walked out the door and Odessa followed, but not before tripping over her robes and banging into the wall.

It couldn't be a finer day for a walk through the grounds. Odessa was positively taken with the lush green of the grass and trees, and the warmth of the sun on her back. It would have been better if her right foot hadn't found the only mud puddle on the dry, dusty road that went through the town of Hogsmeade. "We really need to get you cured of your Faustus Malloren complex," said Hastings.

"It wears off in 24 hours," said Odessa. "Assuming, of course, that they only gave me a little bit of it. I could be like this forever."

"Well," said Hastings. "Why don't we try to brew you up a batch of Felix? I bet that'll counter your bad luck."

"Somehow, I don't think I should go around mixing any potions today," said Odessa.

"Well, I could—"

"I don't think so, Haste," said Odessa rather too fast. "I trust my bad luck potion-making skills more than yours, which have always been abysmal."

"Don't I know it?" asked Hastings jovially. "Good thing I scraped a Satisfactory on my OWLs. I have no idea why I ended up becoming a teacher."

"Because your Patronus is a Giant silvery Thestral that probably made your examiners pee in their robes, and you can laugh a Boggert to death better than anyone I've ever seen."

"I'd never have made it as an Auror, though," said Hastings.

"Yeah, you'd never have made it through the Combat Skills Testing without killing someone."

"Can I help it if I'm a non-conformist who hates to take orders?" asked Hastings.

They were just passing the Three Broomsticks when they heard voices behind them. It was Falcon and Sirius. "Hurry!" said Hastings, grabbing Odessa's arm and pulling her into an alleyway. Hiding behind some dust bins, the listened to the men's conversation.

"I don't want to go! I must see her… my goddess… my muse… my reason for living and my breath of life!" Odessa covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing out loud.

"Looks like he's not over Vector yet," said Hastings.

"Come on, mate," said Falcon. "You'll be right as rain in a few minutes. We need to see Madam Rosemerta. She'll set you right."

"But," said Sirius with passion, "She _needs _me! I haven't finished helping her scrub out the chamber pots—"

"She's bloody sick of you declaring your love every second, you prat." said Falcon, continuing to drag his friend down the street. As they passed the alleyway, Odessa and Hastings almost burst as they saw Falcon's amused but resolute façade, and Sirius's disheveled, love-sick appearance.

Once they were sure they hadn't been seen, Odessa and Hastings crept out of the alley and watched the two men walk into the Three Broomsticks. "Have you ever seen a man look so pathetic?" asked Hastings.

"Yes," said Odessa softly. "I've seen it…"

Hastings looked at her friend with a confused expression on her face. Uncomfortable with the sudden silence, Hastings cleared her throat and said, "Um, let's just get to our shopping for McGonagall. Ah, here—into Office Supplies for the Professional Witch or Wizard. Come on in, Ode."

Odessa followed, and tried to put a friendly demeanor on, but as they looked for parchment, quills, and ink, she seemed a little more and more down-hearted. When she knocked over a rainbow set of Ink jars, Hastings cleaned it up and sent her outside to sit on a bench while she finished shopping. "You're gonna cost us galleons with your bad luck, Ode," said Hastings, pointing to the door.

"Odessa readily agreed to leaving Hastings to the shopping, and walked out into the warm summer air. She sat on a rough-hewn bench in front of the window, feeling calmed by the soft breeze in the air. In a moment, she saw Falcon and Sirius come out of the Three Broomsticks across the street. Sirius was walking on his own now, standing up straight, and running his fingers through his black hair in an attempt to tame the unkempt look. The effect only made it spikier and less manageable, but somehow, on his tall, thin frame, the look was right, and it reminded Odessa of the old days…

Torn out of her reverie at the sight of the handsomest man she'd ever known, was the reality that they were both walking toward her. She tucked her hair behind her ears and smoothed her robes, trying to look as though she hadn't just been staring at Sirius Potter for the last minute.

"Fancy seeing you here," said Falcon, almost a bounce in his step.

"And you," said Odessa.

"Where's your partner in crime?" asked the now-cured Sirius.

"Inside, buying up all the green ink she can find," said Odessa. "Told me to wait outside when I shattered seven multi-colored bottles…"

Falcon chuckled, but Sirius just stood, staring at Odessa.

"What's wrong?" she asked him.

"Nothing," he shot back quickly, and looked away.

"Um… I think I'll just go and see what's keeping Hastings," said Falcon, pushing the door open and walking inside.

Sirius looked at the ground and shoved his hands in his pockets, his foot kicking slightly at the ground. After a moment, he pulled his hands out of his pockets, his left hand holding onto a bottle. He brought his hands together, effectively hiding the bottle before him, and sat next to Odessa. "Look," he said. "Maybe we've all gotten a bit out of hand…"

Odessa, shocked beyond words that he should say something like that, she just nodded.

"So… here's the deal," said Sirius. "I give you this…" he showed her the bottle in his hand. It was clear, with sapphire blue liquid inside. "And we call it a truce."

"Where'd you get that?" asked Odessa. "It's Felix, isn't it?"

"Yes," said Sirius. "Madam Rosemerta had it. When she cured me… I thought… we should just put this all behind us. I mean… it is rather childish, you know?"

"Well, I agree, Sirius," said Odessa. "And I appreciate the gesture. I was feeling guilty about giving you the Number 9. Truce?" she held out her right hand, and Sirius shook it, leaving the bottle with her.

"Should be enough to counter the bad luck… and maybe give you a nice evening," said Sirius, smiling warmly. Odessa smiled back, remembering again how things used to be between them, almost wishing those days could come back.

"What happened between us, Sirius?" she asked.

Sirius looked at her, then looked away. "I… I don't know, Odessa. Jealously, suspicion. The usual, I guess."

"But we never really stopped being friends, did we?" asked Odessa. It was as much a question as it was a statement. She was affirming her friendship toward him while asking if she was still his.

"Of course," he said, smiling his crooked, charming half-smile. "You'd better drink that Felix before something else happens."

Odessa unstopped the bottle and said, "Thanks, Sirius," then drank it down.

There was, indeed, Felix inside, immediately taking away the effects of the Faustus. But there was something else, as well. Something that took the form of a great, puffy gray beard on Odessa's face. "Aging potion!" she asked, looking hurt.

Sirius jumped up and dodged as she threw the potion bottle at him, laughing. "That's for the Love Potion!" he said. "Now we can have a truce."

"Not on your life, Sirius Potter," said Odessa. "This means war, you prat!" Sirius continued to laugh as Hastings and Falcon walked out of the store, both cracking up at the sight of Odessa's face.

"Hmmm," said Falcon. "I guess we're still playing war…"

"Well," said Hastings. "They were the ones playing war in the first place, weren't they? It was never really us…"

Without another word, Falcon took Hastings's hand and kissed it. "Until next we meet, Miss Applespice." He nodded, winked, and walked over to Sirius, punching him playfully in the arm. "Come on, Potter. Let's get you armored up for whatever punishment is coming your way."


	9. Chapter 9

"That cad!" Odessa sputtered as she removed the beard. "We've got to do something so…so…something."

Hastings giggled, "I think you look good with the beard."

"Shut up," Odessa muttered.

"Come on, it was really funny. Shall we go buy the ingredients for Falcon's stuff?"

Odessa shook her head, "No. That's too simple. It has to be something bigger, something better than anything they've come up with."

"But what?" Hastings asked.

"I don't know yet. But we'll figure out something. Come on, let's finish that shopping list.

"Man! That was excellent!" Falcon said, patting Sirius on the back. "She didn't even see it coming."

Sirius grinned, "I know, I know. Good thing Madam Rosemerta is quite the potions lady herself."

"And has such a great sense of humor." Falcon added.

"That too." Sirius agreed.

"So what are we going to do next?"

"I don't know," Sirius said. "Odessa looked rather mad so we should be expecting something big, but sloppy from the girls."

"Even with Hastings there?" Falcon asked.

"Even with Hastings there." Sirius repeated. "Have you ever seen Odessa mad. I mean really mad? She has a bad temper and when it flares up, well, she can be rather irrational. I don't think she'll listen to Hastings."

"So what do we do in the meantime?"

"Think up something really good. Something that doesn't involve potions."

"Maybe something more muggle-like." Falcon suggested.

"What do you mean, muggle-like?"

Falcon shrugged, "They're going to be expecting magic, we'll give them the exact opposite. My brothers and I used to play some great tricks on each other. Perhaps we can do a bunch of the little ones at once."

"Like…?"

"Like saran wrap on the toilets, a bucket of water above the door, snakes under their pillows, stuff like that. Simple, yet effective."

"I like it." Sirius said, nodding in approval. "Let's hurry back so we can get it done before the girls return."

Odessa sat on the barstool sipping her Butter Beer while she waited for Hastings to come out of the loo. _Why did I trust the man?_ She wondered, mad at herself for being taken in by Sirius. _He will never change. Here I go and start to put my heart on the line and he just smashes it. What was I thinking?._

"Planning Sirius' demise?" Hastings asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"You better believe it. And I've got just the thing."

"Which is…?"

"Which is moving all of his stuff out of his room and leaving a note, signed by McGonagall, informing him of his termination and a letter from the Ministry of Magic informing him that his wand has been broken for some crime or other."

"That's not a prank Odessa, that's just mean," Hastings protested.

"Well, he deserves it." Odessa shot back. "He deserves it for believing I cheated on him, he deserves it for breaking up with me, for making out with Chantrell at the dance, for making me believe I could trust him and then causing me to look like a fool. Oh, he deserves something terrible Hastings, and I'm going to make sure it happens to him. I'm going to swipe his wand, clean out his room and you're going to leave the notes."

Hastings held up her hands, "I'm not going to be a part of this Odessa."

"Yes you are," Odessa said firmly. "You're the best forger I've ever known. And it's perfectly in the rules. No one gets hurt, but it causes mayhem."

"Sirius will get hurt." Hastings said.  
"No," Odessa contradicted, "he'll get what he deserves. Now, are you going to help me?"  
Hastings sighed, "Yes, I'll help you with the notes, but you're doing the rest."

"Fine. Let's go." Odessa pushed back her chair and left, ignoring the beautiful day as she plotted just how she was going to get close enough to Sirius to take his wand.


	10. Chapter 10

While the boys were eating dinner, Odessa cleaned out Sirius' room with the help of a few house elves whom she had shamelessly lied to. Hastings worked on the notes and brought them to Odessa.

"I still don't think this is right," she muttered, handing Odessa the notes.

"I don't want to hear it," Odessa muttered back, placing the notes on his night stand. "Now, to get his wand. I need you to keep Falcon distracted." Shaking her head, Hastings followed Odessa to the Teacher's Lounge where Sirius and Falcon were playing wizard's chess. Hastings sat down next to Falcon and Odessa sat across the room.

"Still mad Ode?" Sirius called out while he watched Falcon's queen smash his knight.

"Not at all Sirius. I thought I looked rather fetching with a beard." Odessa smiled and walked over to his chair, sitting on the arm. "After all, all's fair in love and war, right?" She whispered in his ear as she pocketed his wand.

Sirius started at the feeling of her face so close to his and glanced over at Falcon and Hastings, who were busy talking.

"Look, Odessa," he started.  
"You don't have to explain anything to me Sirius. It's a prank war. But I'm tired, I think I'll go to bed. Coming Hastings?"

Hastings shook her head and motioned that she'd be staying to watch the game. Falcon and Sirius exchanged looks that weren't lost on Odessa, "Have a good night," Falcon said, trying to sound nonchalant.

"I'm sure I will," Odessa said, leaving the room. But instead of going to her room she made a beeline for Sirius's and hid in the now empty wardrobe. About an hour later she heard Sirius walk in.

"What the-?" Sirius looked around his now empty room and saw the two pieces of parchment sitting on the nightstand. Walking over, he picked up the one from Professor McGonagall. Scanning it, his face turned redder and redder. He threw the letter down and picked up the second one. After reading it he began to search his pockets frantically. His temper flaring, he starting slamming open drawers, throwing back the covers and finally tearing open the wardrobe door, only to find Odessa there, trying to smother her laughter.

"What kind of crap is this Odessa?" Sirius almost yelled.

"Temper, temper," Odessa said, smiling. "I suggest that if you want your wand back you should cool down."

"Hand it over." Sirius held out his hand.

"Why should I? I'm now in possession of it and without it, well, you definitely won't win this prank war."

"This isn't funny Odessa," Sirius took a step towards her and pulled her out of the wardrobe."

"No, I don't suppose it is," Odessa said. "But neither is what you did to me."

"You can't be serious, it was only a beard."

"It was much more than that Sirius Potter and you know it," Odessa's voice started to get louder.

"What, the fact that you cheated on me?" Sirius asked mockingly.

"I NEVER cheated on you, Sirius Potter, and you know it!" Odessa yelled.

"What about the letter?"

"What letter?" Odessa said angrily. "The one that said I was going to dump you for what's-his-name? The one that said I no longer wanted to be with you because I enjoyed spending time with _him_ more?"

"Yeah, that letter." Sirius said, his voice deadly quiet.

Odessa closed the distance between them, "I never wrote it. I don't know who did. I don't care who did. And obviously you never did either. You went on one assumption and took something…something wonderful and tore it to pieces. I hate you Sirius Potter. You can go to hell." Trying to hide her tears, Odessa tossed his wand on the floor and marched out of the room.

"Odessa!" Sirius called after her, but his only answer was the slamming of the common room door. Sirius sank onto his bed and buried his head in his hands.

Falcon came in, "Is everything all right mate?" He paused and looked around. "What happened to all your stuff?"

"Odessa Grace happened to it."

"Yeah," said Falcon, plopping down on the couch. "I've been meaning to talk to you about that."

"What?" asked Sirius, refusing to calm down, but pacing through the room, his wand making sparks.

"This has to end," said Falcon. "It's getting immature. Strike that… it always _was _immature. Now it's getting downright dangerously stupid.

"Please, spare me," said Sirius.

Falcon continued, "Sure, no one's been hurt. Sure, it's been in fun and games—at least with Hastings and me—but you and Odessa… mate, you take it to another level. I was talking to Haste outside. We heard you two shouting. We've both decided to stop this. Even Hastings decided, so you know it's serious."

"Oh, come on, Falcon," said Sirius. "It's only—"

"It's only childish pranks, I know that, Sirius!" Falcon said, more heatedly. "And here's a news-flash for you. We. Are. No. Longer. CHILDREN!"

That made Sirius stop in his tracks. He hung his head and sat down on the couch next to his friend. "I… I know…"

"We're Hogwarts teachers and if this goes on, it's no longer detention. It's not even the threat of expulsion. We could be sacked before you know it. You know that… you've worked here for years already."

"Yeah," said Sirius, "Alone. Odessa wasn't there then. I could do this forever if… _she _wasn't here."

"She was one of our best friends, Sirius," said Falcon, calmly. "She's your former girlfriend. And you're so crazy about her your head's spinning round."

"Oh, please, you know me better than that," said Sirius.

"I know you very well, Sirius," said Falcon. He looked at his hands in his lap. "That's why it's so obvious to me how you feel about her. But… I also know Hastings. She… she really does seem to like me. I don't know how much, but… but I want to find out. And having you and Odessa fighting like cats and dogs doesn't help things."

"Falcon, I…"

"She's the best thing in the world to me. Hastings is like… another one of me. She brings out my lighter side."

"You haven't got a lighter side," said Sirius.

Falcon chuckled and scratched his chin, which had a day's worth of stubble on it. Letting his hand drop to his lap, he sighed and said, "You're right. I'm not much for spontaneity. I take things seriously: life, my career… everything. But, since we've been talking—beyond the stupid bashfulness that was all we could manage when we were at school together—we've really started to compliment each other. She—she tempers me, Sirius. And I hope that I have some amount of influence on her as well. Main thing is… I want to be with her."

"Then be with her, mate," said Sirius. "Stop pranking with me. I'm still going to do it, though. Do what you have to do."

"What I have to do is ask you to stop, too," said Falcon. "Hastings likes me, okay, _likes _me. If that's to turn into something else, all this has to end. She's fun and goofy a lot of the time… but she's fiercely loyal. After Odessa's prank today... Well, I wouldn't put it past you to do something equally wretched to her. And, she'd probably deserve it."

"You bet your sweet—"

"But it has to stop somewhere, Sirius," said Falcon.

"It will," said Sirius. "When she stops it. When she admits to what she did to me."

"Are you so blind and pathetic?" asked Falcon, exasperated. "She did nothing to you. She never wrote that letter."

"Who was it then?" asked Sirius.

"I have no idea," said Falcon. "But if you know her so well, you should know that she could never be so cruel."

"Yeah, what about her letter tonight. Oh, what a sweet little gesture, placing a note from McGonagall on my pillow and packing my little knickknacks up so nicely for me. You're absolutely right. Not a cruel bone in her body." Sirius spoke with such comical sarcasm, that it might have been funny, if he didn't also have a telltale look of pain etched in every line on his face.

Falcon stood up. "Know what I think?"

"What?" asked Sirius rudely. "I'm sorry, mate… What do you think, Falcon?" he asked a little more kindly.

"First off, I think I need to go to bed. You may be able to stay up all night, but I'm a morning person, and I'm about to drop," said Falcon as he stretched. "I also think that she was acting out of hurt and out of hope, and out of… well whatever irrational nonsense women are capable of. Think about this, Sirius. If you want to keep playing these kid games with Odessa to fulfill some bogus need of vengeance, fine. But as of now, you're on your own. I'm pursuing Hastings. I want no part of this anymore. I mean it. You can't talk me into it, Sirius."

"Oh, yeah?" said Sirius. "What about your little girlfriend? Are you going to be helping her and Odessa get me then?"

"Man, if you weren't my best mate, and I wasn't afraid of breaking my hand on your rock of a head, I would punch you for that. For your information, Hastings is having the exact same talk with Odessa right now. She and I are out of this. Think about this, and when you're ready to grow up, come talk to me." Falcon shot Sirius a look of disgust and stormed out of his bedroom.

"You what!" Odessa nearly shouted.

"I'm not explaining it all again, Odessa," said Hastings meekly, finding it harder and harder to stand up to her impassioned friend. "It's just that… Falcon's more of the serious sort… and I want to show him that I'm not just a playful little kid."

"So, this is all for a guy?" asked Odessa.

"More than that," said Hastings. "I know I'm better than this. When I worked here before… I felt more grown-up then. But since you've started your vendetta rampage against Sirius Potter, it's like all four of us have regressed into third years."

"All four of us? Or just me?" asked Odessa, sounding hurt.

"Give me a break, Ode," said Hastings, throwing her hands into the air. "It's not that. I think that you need to sit down with Sirius—"

"Yeah, that's going to happen," said Odessa.

"Sit down _calmly,_ and talk. Tell him how you feel. God knows one of you has to be the mature one, and I don't expect Sirius to do that… so, it has to be you."

Odessa folded her arms, and almost wanted to stomp her foot, but she realized how childish it seemed, so she simply dropped her arms to her side and laughed. "This is why we're friends, do you know that?"

"Why, because I give you verbal thrashings from time to time?" asked Hastings.

"Well, that too," said Odessa. "Mostly because you… well, you know what to say when… You were brave to tell me this while I was so mad. With my temper… I was liable to—"

"You can't use your temper as an excuse all the time," said Hastings. "It's something that needs to be gotten control of… like me. I need to get control of my silliness, and my fears, and… well, my whole life. It's not easy in the adult world, Odessa."

"You know, you're right," said Odessa. "I should be furious about that. I should hate you. But… you have a point."

"You know you love me," said Hastings, affecting a charming smile.

"Yeah, well, don't push it," said Odessa. "I need to get some sleep. And you do too. Especially if you want to practice your seriousness so that you can become Mrs. Puddinghaste."

Hastings laughed as she opened the door to Odessa's bedroom. "If we ever get married, I think I may make him take my name… though Applespice isn't much better."

"You could always mix them and become Applepudding!" said Odessa with a loud laugh."

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Good night, Odessa."

"G'night, Applepudding!"

Hastings shut the door a little too loudly on her way out.


	11. Chapter 11

Odessa sang quietly to herself as she organized the potion shelves in her office, "Tigers and lions and bears, oh my! Tigers and lions and bears, oh my!" Term was starting next week and Odessa was shamefully behind on planning her classes and getting everything organized. After her last argument with Sirius she had studiously avoided and ignored him, hanging out with Hastings and Falcon only when he wasn't around, which meant spending a lot of time in her room and in Hogsmeade. Odessa smiled at the thought of Hastings and Falcon, "Here comes the bride, fair, fat and wide. Here come the groom, skinny as a broom…"

"Who're you calling wide?" A voice asked from behind her.

Odessa jumped, almost dropping the bottles in her hands, "Hastings! Hi! No one. I was just thinking of you and Falcon and _Here Comes the Bride_ popped into my head. It's the only version I know."

"What about, Here comes the bride, all dressed in white…?" Hastings asked.

"Oh, well yeah, I suppose there's that one. But I like the other version better." Odessa grinned. "And how may I help you today?"

"I was going to go to Hogsmeade for some coffee. Want to come?"  
"I'm so far behind in preparing for my classes I don't know if I should."

"Oh, it'll be fun. You'll get a nice break. Besides, I need to speak with you about Falcon."

"He proposed!" Odessa said excitedly.

Hastings rolled her eyes, "Not exactly. I'm having second thoughts."

"What do you mean you're having second thoughts? Falcon is amazing."

"Yeah, amazingly boring. Now, are you going to come have coffee with me or not?"

"Well yeah, of course I am, after that. Hold on, let me wash up and change robes. These aren't exactly presentable." Odessa motioned to her splattered potions robe and went into the back room of her office.

Hastings perused the shelves Odessa had been organizing, wondering how anyone in their right mind could find potions exciting. _Of course,_ she thought with a grin, _Odessa's never been in her right mind_.

"Oh, Hastings, hello. I was looking for Odessa." Hastings looked up to see Professor Vector standing in the doorway.

"She went into the back room to clean up."

"That's okay. I just needed some dragon scales that have been soaking in the moonlight. Odessa said she'd put some aside for me."

"They're on my desk," Odessa said, walking out of the room in fresh clothes. "I hope that helps."

"I'm sure it will, thanks." Professor Vector picked the bottle up and left.

"What does she want dragon scales for?" Hastings asked. "They're not used in very many potions. At least not in any that aren't considered part of the dark arts."

"So you do know something about Potions," Odessa said. "I'm shocked."

"No, I know a lot about the Dark Arts," Hastings corrected her.

"Of course, silly me," Odessa laughed. "Remember when we looked through her telescope and could see through the wall into space?" Hastings nodded. "Well, she's trying to refine it. Only lasts for about five minutes. She's been playing around with the ingredients. Hopes to get it right before the students return." Odessa stopped and took a deep breath as they stepped outside. "It's a beautiful day, isn't it."

Hastings nodded in agreement, "I love summer. Say, want to race to Hogsmeade?"

"Are you nuts?" Odessa asked. "I haven't done that since I was twelve."

"It'll be fun. And no magic."

"You just want to because you'll know you'll finally beat me. You and Falcon have made this walk almost everyday this summer and I've only been on a quarter of them."

"It's your own fault," Hastings said. "You were always invited."

"Yeah, but so was _he_." Odessa said, wrinkling her nose. "I can't bear to be around him. First I remember all the terrible things he's said to me. And then I remember what I did to him and what I said a few months ago. It's just too embarrassing to be around him. What he must think of me." Odessa shook her head. "Does he ever say anything?"

"You know he doesn't, Ode." Hastings said. "If he does, it's to Falcon alone and Falcon wouldn't betray his trust by telling me."

"I know," Odessa said. "And I appreciate that about Falcon. So why are you're thinking about breaking up with him?"

"Let's wait until we get to the coffee shop," Hastings said. "I don't want to think about it just yet. Are you sure you don't want to race?"

Odessa smiled, "Why not? Goodness knows I need the exercise. Ready…set…go!" The girls set off for Hogsmeade, laughing as though they were school children.

"I don't know Falcon." Sirius said, turning away from the window where he had been watching the girls. "I feel like such an idiot. Here she was offering to make peace, and I gave her a beard."

"It was only a little thing, Sirius. She shouldn't have taken it so hard."

"I know. And it shouldn't have taken me so long to figure out what upset her so much. You'll have to thank Hastings for me again, clearing that one up." Sirius paused thoughtfully. "But, you know, it was more than that. It was months of frustration and anger and…I don't know. You know, I never believed she wrote that letter."

"Then why did you accuse her of it?" Falcon asked.

Sirius shrugged, "I was afraid, I guess. I mean, she's the perfect woman Fal. Too perfect. And I'm…well, I'm far from perfect. And when I found the letter…it was just an easy way out." Sirius sat down on the bed next to Falcon. "It was also the dumbest thing I've ever done."

"I agree with you there mate. You treated her like complete rubbish."

"You don't have to remind me," Sirius said. "I know how I treated her. And now she can't even stand to be in the same room with me. How am I ever going to apologize now?"

"Surprise her. Just show up in her office or something, when she's not expecting you. Or, how about this? I was going to do this for Hastings, but I'll come up with something new. On the first day of class have an owl deliver her a rose every period with a message attached. She'll think it's sweet, the kids'll have fun with it. It'll work like a charm."

"I don't know, she doesn't like to be embarrassed."

"It _won't_ be embarrassing," said Falcon. "At least not in a bad way. Come on, it might help to crack the wall she's built up."

"But what'll you do for Hastings?"

Falcon shrugged, "I might do the same thing anyway. Then they can giggle over how we conspired to make their first day fun."

Sirius nodded, "I think that just might work. Thanks Falcon."

"Okay Haste, tell me why you're thinking of breaking up with Falcon." Odessa said, as she sat down with her double chocolate mocha.

"Well, I mean, he's a great guy and all, don't get me wrong. But he's rather boring. You remember when I told you that I was out of the pranks thing, that I wanted to act more like an adult to impress Falcon?"

"Yeah, how could I forget that night?" Odessa said wryly.

"Well, it worked. But…I feel like I have to suppress the side of me that enjoys pranks, and enjoys running to Hogsmeade, and likes sitting on the floor or on the table. I feel like I always have to sit in a chair now. I'm beginning to feel old."

"Why don't you tell Falcon?"

"I've tried," Hastings said, "but whenever I bring up things like that he just talks about how great it is to be an adult now. All we ever do is sit and read, or sit and talk, or come here and have coffee. That's it. No exciting dates, no romance," Hastings paused, "no passion."

"What do you mean, no passion?" Odessa asked, shocked. "I still remember your face when you told me about your first kiss. I couldn't get you out of the clouds for weeks after that."

"I know," Hastings said. "But it's all so proper now. Like we had one great kiss and now he kisses me on the cheek, or chastely on the lips like I'm his grandmother. I don't know what to do Ode."

"Well, look who we have here," both girls looked up to see Professor O'Reilly standing over them.

"I thought you were gone, Professor, or should I say, Mr. O'Reilly." Odessa said coldly.

"Don't get smart with me girl. I just wanted to see how the potion lessons were coming along." He smirked at their drinks. "I see planning for classes doesn't take much of a priority."

"She's already done," Hastings said, jumping to her aid.

O'Reilly chuckled, "I doubt that, Miss Applespice. I know Miss Grace a little better than that. I have no doubt you're done, but not Grace."

"What do you want O'Reilly?" Odessa asked.

"Just checking up on you, Miss Grace. You may think you're looks will get you through this world, but they won't. Miss Applespice knows that – she doesn't allow her pretty face to go to her head. I'll be seeing you around, I'm sure." O'Reilly nodded at them and left.

"I can't stand that creep!" Odessa said, angrily. "He's sent me several owls on how to run my class, and now he keeps popping up. Oh, I despise that man."

"You should tell Minerva about it."

"I wish I could," Odessa said. "But she came to me last week and told me, rather excitedly, that Professor O'Reilly had offered to help me out since it was my first year as a teacher. I didn't have the heart to tell her the truth. No, I'm afraid he's going to be around all year. Perhaps he'll take more of an interest in your pretty face than in mine."

"You know, I could dump Falcon for O'Reilly," Hastings said, trying to keep a straight face.

"You would make a rather fetching couple," Odessa said, before breaking into laughter. "Honestly Haste, that's the sickest thing I think I've ever heard. Come on, I've got to prepare those classes. We can talk on the way back."

They stood and paid their bill, then walked out into the sunlight. The air was still warm, but there was a late summer feel to it that Hastings remembered as rather depressing when she was a child. Now, it made her anticipate the school year, and the new children she would meet, and the challenges she would give them. When she taught here four years ago, she'd quickly become one of their favorite professors because of her energy and genuine care for the students. She still cared, but she felt as though much of her energy had been suppressed. "I don't know, Odessa," said Hastings. "I guess I just want someone who wants to… share an adventure."

"Good Lord, woman, you sound like a cheesy romance novel," said Odessa.

"I'm being serious," said Hastings. "I feel so trapped with Falcon. He's so straight and narrow and planning and proper—I feel like I am playing a role with him… one that I'm getting sick of."

"You've always been a fun person," said Odessa. "If you honestly think that he's trying to change you, or doesn't like you for who you are, then go ahead and break it off with him. Personally, I think you're afraid of something deeper."

"What are you talking about?" asked Hastings.

"Ever heard the phrase, 'in love with love?' That's what I think you are."

"Not possible," said Hastings. "I really do want love in my life, and I want to be able to make a commitment… I just feel stifled around that bore. He's never spontaneous. I get the feeling that he'll never be the knight in shining armor type, and I'll always be this wild, untamed tomboy."

Odessa looked at her friend, noting that her fun, frollicky friend who always had a bounce in her step was now becoming quiet and docile all the time. But as demure and ultra-feminine as she attempted to be, her true self always came out. Odessa realized that the juxtaposition of her friend next to the tall, straight and strapping, curly-blond haired figure of Falcon was like night and day. She had the idea of a severe business man with his puppy on a short leash, training her to heal. She laughed as she thought of that.

"What," asked Hastings, her smile brightening a moment.

"Just an image I had of you two," said Odessa. "The more I think about it, the more I realize that you do need someone more like you."

"Yeah," said Hastings. "That's liable to happen at Hogwarts where the pickings are slim."

"You could fall mad for some seventh year this term," said Odessa.

"I'm not interested in a life sentence in Azkaban for cradle-robbing, Ode," said Hastings.

"Seventeen isn't cradle-robbing. They are legal, you know."

"And I'm 28. No. Way."

They'd reached the Hogwarts gates, and Hastings reached out to open them. Suddenly, several hundred owls flew over head, dispersing as they reached Hogsmeade.

"What in the world was that?" asked Odessa.

Hastings looked up, then back down at the path. "That'll be the Hogwarts letters with school supplies that McGonagall sent out."

"Whoa," said Odessa. "I always wondered… does she handwrite them herself?"

"She uses a Copier Quill," said Hastings, closing the gate behind them. "She writes the letters for years first through seven, has them copied, then addresses them with a list the ministry gives her—"

"List of what?" asked Odessa.

"You know… students who show magical talent. Underage magic sensors all over the British Isles. List of potential first years. Even sends them to children of magical parents who haven't shown talent. Squibs are usually discovered before term starts though."

"How do they discover them?" asked Odessa.

"Well, when you were eleven, your parents knew you were magical already, didn't they?"

"I guess so. I set my Fruity Pebbles on fire when I was three and a half—though they were already soaking in milk. Mum was so proud."

"Yeah," said Hastings. "I was actually thought to be a squib for a while."

"You never told me that," said Odessa.

"My Hogwarts letter came, and my parents were going to write McGonagall to tell her that I would not be attending. I begged and pleaded, and stayed up all night, trying to make things happen. It was just as my dad was attaching the refusal letter to the leg of Omri, our family owl, that I begged one more time. He said no, and… well, the next thing I know, he was standing on the roof. After the fire brigade got him down, he tore up his letter and he and mum took me to Diagon Alley to get my things."

"That's funny," said Odessa. "Obviously you got over that. You made your first patronus as a second year."

"Something Sirius taught me to do," said Hastings. Odessa started at the sound of his name. "His father insisted on making sure all his kids could do it by age eight. He was really good."

"Yeah, he told me about that, although he never said what form it took. Would you believe he was too embarrassed?"

Hastings laughed, "No, I don't think I would believe that."

"It was kind of cute, actually. He used to brag about being able to make a patronus when we were dating. I always struggled with it in school, but not Sirius. He wouldn't tell me what shape it took though. And then, of course, we broke up after graduation and lost contact. He wanted to see the world and I wanted to be a Potions Master. But you already know all this."

"Tell me again," Hastings said, "I love to hear it."

Odessa grinned, "The break up was mutual. We both wanted to experience the world, see what else was out there. _Who_ else was out there. And then, two years ago, we ran into each other in Hogsmeade. He was teaching at Hogwarts and I was getting away from London for the weekend. _And_ the Ministry." Odessa smiled fondly. "I was drinking a butter beer at The Three Broomsticks and I hear this voice, 'Odessa Grace, is that you?' and I turned around and there he was. Just as handsome as ever. A bit more grown up, but with the same mischievous grin. And it was like we had never been apart. Almost as though we both _knew_ that we were supposed to be together. That there wasn't anyone else out there. Not for us anyway.

"But then all of that changed the night he found that letter sitting on my desk." Odessa laughed humorlessly, "Like I'd be stupid enough to leave a letter out proclaiming my love for someone else when I knew Sirius was coming over. He thought it was my way of breaking up with him. Never believed me when I told him I hadn't written the letter, that I had no idea where it came from. He just left. I didn't see him again until the night of the ball. And all of that hurt came back. Did you know he asked me to dance?

Hastings shook her head.

"He did. And I was about to accept, but I couldn't forget what he accused me of. What he believed I had done. And in my pride I turned him down. And now I can't even be in the same room as the man. So childish, I know." Odessa paused. "So, do you know?" she asked.

"Know what?" Hastings asked.

"What form his patronus takes.

"You'll never guess," said Hastings, smiling.

"Come on," said Odessa. "Tell me."

"A Phoenix," said Hastings. "You know, Sirius's father was saved once by a Phoenix, when he was at Howarts…"

"I know," said Odessa. "Who hasn't heard that story? That was when he saved Sirius's mother from Voldemort."

"You know," said Hastings. "That same phoenix belonged to Albus Dumbledore."

"I didn't know that!" said Odessa. "How do you know all that stuff?"

"Modern magical history is a big part of the DA academy," said Hastings. "You know, Sirius's father founded it, for the training of Dark Arts Defense. It's now a requirement for all Aurors as well as Dark Arts teachers."

"Yes, we all know who Harry-bloody-Potter is, okay?" said Odessa.

"Well, I thought you were interested, you did ask, after all, and—"

"I know, I know," said Odessa. "I'm sorry… I'm just sick of hearing about Sirius's father. It was miserable when we were dating. Strangers would just come up and start talking to Sirius about his dad. It got tiring."

"For him too, most of the time," said Hastings. "Lots to live up to when your father defeated the most evil wizard who ever lived. I suppose that's why he's so grumpy. Trying to be a self-made man… not just the son of one."

Odessa thought about it for a moment as they walked into the teachers' lounge, she knew the truth of Hastings words, but it was easier to think of him as a jerk rather than feeling sorry for the man.


	12. Chapter 12

"Jade! I'm so glad you're here," Odessa said, running into the greenhouse. "I need some night fern. The first-years are going to arrive any minute and I can't find it. I thought I stocked it last week and it's not there." Odessa stopped and buried her face in hands. "Why did I ever agree to become a teacher?"

Professor Greene patted her on the shoulder, "Because you're amazing at Potions. Minerva was so excited when you agreed to work here. And so was I. I no longer had to put up with O'Reilly."

Odessa laughed, "Can't blame you there. I, unfortunately, have to."

"Ah yes, so I heard. Minerva always liked O'Reilly. He's very particular about things and I think that appeals to her. Anyway, enough chitter chatter. Here's some night fern. And make sure you don't let them first years learn that mixing that with lacewing flies and putting it into pumpkin juice makes you just sick enough to get out of class."

"I was thinking of telling them that it'd kill them instead. What do you think?"

The kindly witch smiled, "It'd probably impress them. Or scare them. Or both."

"Yeah, but with my luck one of them would try it out to see if I was telling the truth. Speaking of, some of my veritaserum has gone missing. Has anyone said anything to you about needing it?"

Professor Greene shook her head, "No, I'm afraid not. But don't you worry about it. Those things usually show up in time, in the last place you expect it. You better get to class."

"Oh yes, the first years. Thanks Jade!" Odessa ran out of the greenhouse and back to the dungeons. She stopped outside the doors, straightened her robes and smoothed her hair. "Here goes nothing," she muttered to herself, clutching the night fern tightly and walking into her first class.

"Hello everyone," she said, walking towards her desk. "I'm Miss-" Odessa stopped. Sitting on her desk was a small, tawny owl. The owl held out it's leg which had a white rose attached along with a message. Forgetting that she was in class, Odessa unrolled the piece of parchment,

Ode-

Here's something to make your first day a little brighter. Truce?

-Sirius

Odessa stared at the note for a few seconds before a rustling behind her reminded her that she was in class. She quickly set the rose down and stuffed the note into her pocket before turning around.

"Excuse me class. As I was saying, my name is Miss Grace and I'm your potions teacher." Odessa tried to keep her mind on her class, but the rose on her desk kept her distracted. She wrote the directions for Love Potion #9 on the board and the students were halfway through trying to concoct the potion, having melted five cauldrons and causing several explosions in the process, before Odessa realized what she had done. She quickly stopped the students and made up a lame excuse about giving them a more difficult, although harmless, potion to start with to show them that brewing potions could be dangerous if one was not careful. She then wrote the correct instructions down and walked up and down the aisle helping the students with their potions, trying to ignore the rose on her desk. At the end of class, she directed the students attention to her once more.

"All right everyone. Now for some fun." She held up a bottle. "This is the potion you brewed today, and I have to confess that I'm rather impressed that most of your potions look a lot like mine. However, to avoid any mishaps, I'm going to have you try my potion rather than your own. Come on, line up."

A small girl with red hair in pigtails raised her hand, "Miss Grace?"

"Yes Jenny?"

"What does it do?"

Odessa smiled, "That's the surprise. It takes about a minute to take effect. Has everyone had some? Good."

The class stood around her, looking nervously at each other, and then someone started to giggle,

"Josiah! Your hair's purple!"

"Well your's is green Harry!" Before long the whole class was laughing and pointing at each other. Odessa handed out mirrors for them to study their reflections.

"Okay everyone, time to clean up!" She called a few minutes later. "The bell's going to ring soon. And your hair will be back to normal by lunch time." The class gathered up their things and Odessa could hear them talking to each other about how cool the class had been. Smiling with relief that the class had turned out okay, Odessa sat down at her desk and waited for the next class. She pulled out the note from Sirius and studied it. There was no reason why they couldn't be friends, she decided. And it was rather sweet. Odessa smiled to herself and glanced at her watch. Only a few more hours until lunch. She could thank Sirius then.

"Hastings," Odessa called out while she followed the students into the Great Hall for lunch.

"Hey! How'd class go? I saw the hair, it seemed to be a big hit with the first years."

"Yeah, they were a lot of fun. But never mind that, you'll never believe what Sirius did!"

"What?" Hastings looked suspicious.

"He sent me a rose and note calling for a truce. It was sitting on my desk this morning. I think I'm going to take him up on the offer."

"What if you end up with another beard?"

Odessa laughed, "Come on Hastings, be on my side. You're the one who keeps saying that I needed to be friends with him."

"I know, I know. But if he hurts you again…well, he better know some good defensive skills."

"Thanks Haste," Odessa said, sitting down. "How was class?"

"Great!" Hastings said. "I saw some of my old students." Hastings paused for a moment. "I got an owl to."

"From Falcon?"

"Yeah, with a note saying how much he cared for me and that he hopes my day goes well."

"You need to break it off with him," Odessa said.

"I know I do. I just don't want to hurt him. Especially when he does stuff like this." Hastings looked around to make sure Falcon hadn't arrived yet. "You know, sometimes I wish life was like a book and I could just kill him…"

"Haste!"

"Or write him out." Hastings said, holding up her hands in a sign of surrender.

"You just need to tell him the truth." Odessa said.

"What am I suppose tell him? 'Hi Falcon. Look, I know I've had a crush on you for years, but well, turns out you're rather boring actually. And I don't want to be with someone boring who has no passion. So I'm going to end it now.'"

Odessa laughed, "Well, maybe not quite that blunt. But…"

"I know. Stop reminding me. Here he comes." Hastings plastered a fake smile on her face and motioned for Falcon to sit next to her. Odessa watched as Sirius slowly approached and gave him a genuine smile. Sirius smiled back and came and sat next to her.

"Thanks for the rose," Odessa said. "It was really nice."

"I hope it didn't embarrass you," Sirius said.

"No, it didn't." Odessa smiled, "But I did write the wrong potion directions on the board. The poor first years were trying to brew a love potion. We had a few cauldron tragedies today."

Sirius laughed, "Poor cauldrons, so mistreated. Some of the first years came in with brightly colored hair. Said it was your doing."

"Yeah, I had them brew a simple hair potion. I didn't let them drink the ones they brewed though. For all I know they added some poison by mistake that didn't change the way the potion looked. I didn't think I should kill any students on the first day."

"Yeah, should probably wait until at least the second."

"Yeah," Odessa said. An awkward silence followed. Odessa wracked her brain for something to say. "Um, how was your day?"

Sirius shrugged, "Not too bad so far. All of the returning students seem to have forgotten everything they learned over the summer and the first years were rather impressed that you can turn a beetle into a button."

"I remember being impressed by that." Odessa said. "Especially since I couldn't do it. I was only really good at potions, and sometimes charms. But I still can't transfigure a beetle most of the times. It was sheer dumb luck that I passed my OWL on transfiguration. Dropped it after fifth year."

"Just like I dropped potions."

"Most people dropped potions," Odessa pointed out.

"True," Sirius said, "But you always had a knack for it."

"I guess I did." Odessa said.

"Well, I guess I better get back to class," Sirius said.

"Me too."

"I'll see you tonight?"

Odessa nodded.

"See you then," Sirius said. Odessa watched him walk out and felt a familiar hurt run through her body. She knew she would never be happy just being Sirius' friend. Sighing, Odessa turned to Hastings,

"So, did you say anything to Falcon?"

"I said thank you," Hastings said. "Other than that, no. And don't say anything."

"I wasn't going to."

"How'd things go with Sirius?"

"Okay, I guess," Hastings said. "It was weird. But better than not talking I suppose. I don't know. We'll see. But I need to get back to class and so do you."

"Have fun," Hastings said.

"You too." Odessa headed back to the dungeons.

Hastings walked into her NEWTs class after lunch, and watched the seventh years file in. She knew all of them and smiled as they took their seats. "If you're interested in teaching or becoming an Auror, you are in the right place," said Hastings. "Otherwise you're here because you're an over-achieving prat who has nothing better to do with your time." The class laughed.

"Welcome back, Professor," said a voice from the back of the room.

Hastings looked towards who said it, and smiled, "Thanks, Mr. Weasely." Cassius Weasely, the youngest of ten children, had been a baby when Hastings was at school. It was strange to think that his big brother Harry was one of her own classmates.

"For the first term, we're going to divide into partner groups. You will be practicing curses and curse repelling on each other, so try to find someone who's fairly well matched in size and magic. Today, however, we will review the last thing we did last term… Who can tell me… Ah, yes, Miss Wood?"

Olivia Wood, who had been raising her hand, stood. She was tall—even for a seventh year, and strongly built. She'd played beater for Gryffindor since her second year, living up to the name her father had made in the sport professionally. "We learned Patronus's, Professor."

"Correct," said Hastings. "Five points for Gryffindor. Raise your hand if you practiced over the summer." A few people raised their hands. "Raise your hand if you did so legally, as in _not underage, Mr. Springly."_ The boy in question blushed, hunching down in his seat, and those around him laughed. The others who had been raising their hands kept them up. "You who have your hands raised, stand up and come to the front of the classroom." They all did so. "Now, I want you to demonstrate to the class the Patronus charm. The rest of the class will guess the form it takes. The more corporeal form your Patronus takes, the easier it will be to guess. The house that guesses the most correctly will be awarded twenty-five points."

The students were excited at the chance at some fun, and as they took turns conjuring their Patronus's, Hastings walked around the room, examining them and writing down points. One of the student's was especially amazing, taking the form of a Chinese Fireball dragon. It sent out a silvery jet of fire and impressed the entire class. At the end of the hour, Hastings was about to assign homework in conjuring a corporeal Patronus when Cassius Weasley piped up—as he was wont to do. "Let's see you conjure yours, then." The students around him agreed quite readily, begging Hastings to show them. She'd never conjured a Patronus for a class before—she'd always had a student demonstrate, or called on another teacher. She had a reason for this; her Patronus was a Thestral, and most of these young men and woman had never seen a real one—she hoped most would never have the chance.

"Not today," said Hastings.

The response was a whiney, "Oh, come on, please?" from all quarters.

"No!" said Hastings, firmly. "Now, two feet of Parchment on the use of a Patronus, and why it is such a good way to ward off Dementors."

Though the class complained about the homework, none of them asked to see her Patronus again.


	13. Chapter 13

Later, in the teacher's lounge, Hastings sat with a cup of tea, still a little shaken about her class. If they knew that she conjured a _Thestral_… It wasn't even worth thinking about. Odessa joined her when she came into the room. "Wow," said Odessa. "You look like you had a rough day."

"Seventh years wanted me to show them my Patronus," said Hastings.

"Ah," said Odessa, "Say no more."

"What's this all about?" asked Falcon, who, to Hastings's regret sat near them.

"Nothing," said Hastings, but Odessa said,

"Her Patronus." Hastings glared at Odessa.

"What about it?" asked Falcon.

"Nothing," said Hastings again.

"Come on," said Falcon. "You can tell me."

Hastings realized that he would bug her unless she told him, and as she wanted him to go away as soon as possible, she said, "It's the form of a Thestral."

"Interesting," said Falcon. "If I might ask, how old were you when you first conjured it?"

"Twelve," said Sirius, who had just joined them. "Taught by yours truly, of course."

Odessa looked at him and blushed as he smiled and winked at her, then sat on a chair next to Falcon.

"But, why did you… I mean, why a Thestral, of all things?" Falcon persisted.

"It was the first magical beast I ever saw when I came to Hogwarts," said Hastings quickly. "And, of course, no one else could see it."

"May I ask who you knew that died?" asked Falcon, matter-of-factly.

Hastings wanted him to leave well enough alone, feeling old pain come back. She looked away.

"Maybe we'll talk about this later," said Odessa, sensing her friend's distress.

"Yeah," said Sirius. "How was your day, anyway, mate?"

Falcon looked to Sirius, then to Odessa, then back to Hastings. "Am I missing something here? Surely you can tell me. It was, what, at least sixteen years ago. It's a part of life, after all, and—"

Hastings fist hit the table with a loud bang. "Is your clinical detachment all you think others are capable of, Falcon?" asked Hastings loudly.

"What do you mean?" asked Falcon, shocked at her outburst. "Calm down. I think if we can talk about this rationally, without becoming passionate—"

"That's always a problem with you, isn't it?" asked Hastings, almost shouting now. "No passion, no feeling, just your medical bullocks!"

"Hastings, he didn't mean—" said Sirius.

"You want to know," said Hastings. "You want to know who I saw die? Who I saw _killed_?"

"Now, Hastings," said Falcon, placing a hand on her arm and trying to quiet her.

Hastings wrenched her arm away from Falcon and stood up. "I was eleven, all right? It was just before school, in the summer. My twin sister and I were playing in our yard…"

"I didn't know you had a twin," said Falcon.

"I don't now," said Hastings though gritted teeth. "A fully-grown wizard walked down the street, pointed his wand at her, and performed Avada Kedavra!" Hot tears now streaming down her face, Hastings rushed off to her bedroom, and they all heard the door slam.

Falcon, shocked at her outburst, stood and retreated to his own room.

Odessa and Sirius were left at the table, looking at each other.

"Well, that went rather well, don't you think?" Sirius asked. Odessa offered a half smile in response.

"I should go talk to her."

"Nah, I think you should stay," Sirius said.

Odessa was surprised, "But Hastings's upset."

"Of course she is. She needs a few minutes alone. Don't forget, I was her friend first."

Odessa bristled, "But I've been her best friend for years now. I don't care if you played as children because your parents worked together. I know her a lot better than you do Sirius."

Sirius placed a hand on her arm, "I'm not trying to upset you Odessa. Or play 'Who likes Hastings better.' I remember that day, I was there. I was in the kitchen with her mom when it happened."

"I know you were." Odessa said sulkily.

"Then please trust me when I say to give her a few minutes. Losing Miriam was a horrible thing, especially considering that the only reason she was killed was because a worker went postal." Sirius paused for a moment. "Did you know that he came after me first?"

Odessa shook her head.

"Yeah. Good 'ol John thought that my mom was more to blame than Hastings' dad. But we weren't at the house when he arrived. Ironically, we were at Hastings' house. He just came into the yard and killed Miriam. She fell on a rake that was in the yard…" Sirius grimaced and paused. "…And then he pointed his wand at Hastings. Mr. Applespice came out in time though, thank goodness for that. Anyway, the point is, whenever Miriam is brought up Hastings prefers to be alone."

"I know," Odessa admitted. "It's just that I want to be there for her. She's always been there for me."

"She's a good friend," Sirius agreed, "but so are you."

"Yeah…a friend." Odessa said quietly. "Listen, it's been a few minutes. I'm going to make sure she's okay." Odessa got up before Sirius could stop her. "You might want to speak with Falcon."

"I wanted to avoid it actually."

Odessa was surprised, "Why?"

"Because then he's going to ask me if Hastings wants to break up with him and I'm tired of lying about the whole thing. Can't you convince Hastings to just take care of it already?"

"How did you know?"

"She's easy to read. Poor Falcon's so star struck that he hasn't noticed yet. I haven't seen him this way since…" Sirius paused.

"Since when?"

"Since he decided that he liked you," Sirius said.

Odessa laughed, "Falcon's never liked me. We've always been friends, but nothing more."

"You just keep telling yourself that Odessa, but he did like you for awhile. When I returned to teach at Hogwarts he would write me about you all the time. Tell me how he loved your blue eyes, or how he thought you were so cute when you wore your hair in pigtails and went around in work out pants. It got rather tiring after awhile to tell you the truth."

"Why didn't he ask me out? I might have said yes." Odessa said.

Sirius laughed, "I doubt that. You were dating what's-his-name at the time. The rookie Quidditch player."

Odessa looked puzzled for a moment, "Oh, you mean Matt. Goodness, that was a long time ago. And it only lasted a few months. He thought a bit much of himself. And Hastings was dating his friend and I felt bad about breaking it off because I thought things might get awkward. That is until she told me she thought the same way about…whatever his name was."

"It was enough to keep Falcon away. And then you and I started dating again."

Odessa blushed at the memory but quickly recovered, "Isn't that against some type of rule? You don't date the girl your friend likes?"

Sirius shrugged, "I was never one for rules."

"That's definitely true." Odessa said.

"You better go check on Hastings."

"And you better make sure Falcon's okay. And tell him he should break up with Hastings. I'm sure you can come up with a good lie. You always could before."

"I'm not sure that was a compliment." Sirius said with a grin. "See ya later."

"See ya."

Sirius sighed and headed towards Falcon's room. He had missed being able to just talk with Odessa. Heck, he missed being able to hold her too. But that letter…Sirius shook his head. Who had written it?

"Hey Falcon," Sirius knocked on the door. "You okay mate?"

Falcon looked up from the letter he was reading. "Better than okay! I've been offered an internship under the head medi-wizard at St. Mungo's. It's for two years, and then I work directly under her and eventually take over her job. This is the chance of a lifetime!"

"What about your job here?" Sirius asked. "What about Hastings?"

"Hastings will understand. And the letter says they'll send a replacement in my stead. Minerva's already been informed. She stopped by to say that she thinks this a great opportunity and I should take it. I need to go tell Hastings. She'll be so excited." Falcon rushed out the door.

"Not in the way you think mate." Sirius said to himself. "Definitely not in the way you think."

Odessa sat quietly by her friend as she cried into her pillow. Her knees were gathered up under her chin, and she hugged her legs. After a few moments of sniffing and breathing deeply, Hastings sat up again. "I'm sorry, Ode," she said, her voice nasally. "You'd think that after seventeen years I could handle talking about Miriam."

"You're allowed to cry," said Odessa. "It's not an unforgivable c— Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to say that."

"That's okay," said Hastings, chuckling in spite of herself. "I know what you meant. That's the difference between you and Falcon, you know? You have a heart, and he… well…" Hastings sighed. "At least this looks like as good a reason as any to break up with him. I felt shallow basing it on our differing passions."

"You shouldn't," said Odessa. "You should at least be with someone who doesn't bore you. Someone who fits you better.

"I thought _you_ were the one who said we _were_ matched," said Hastings.

"Well, I did think you were a good match in some ways. I still do," said Odessa, shrugging her shoulders.

"Do me a favor," said Hastings.

"What's that?"

Hastings smiled and said, "I love you, but don't ever try to hook me up me again."

Odessa smiled in return, "Only until someone better shows up."

"Ninny," said Hastings, her nose still extremely stuffy.

"Dork," said Odessa just as there was a knock on the door.

"Cubb ind!" Hastings said through her stuffed nose.

The door opened cautiously, and Falcon came in. "Everything okay?"

Rolling her eyes behind the hanky, she said, "It is dow."

Apparently thinking he was the reason that she felt better, Falcon said, "Well then, let me throw another log on the fire."

"Should I go?" asked Odessa.

"No, you stay," he said. "This is good news. I want you both to hear it."

Hastings threw her hanky into a hamper in the corner, then sat back on the bed, Indian style, hugging a pillow to her chest. "What's up?" she asked.

"Well, ladies," said Falcon, obviously proud. "I have been chosen to become the new intern to the head Medi-Wizard at St Mungo's! Isn't that great?"

Hastings was shocked. "But… but… you just stopped working there to come here. What happened?"

"Well, apparently, Susan Herring, the director, heard about my work in my old department, and couldn't wait to get me back. I'll be training for her position. Just think! Head of the hospital! A real career!"

Hastings, who was not amused, threw her pillow aside and stood up. Folding her arms before her and cocking her head to the side, she said, "What do you call working at Hogwarts, Falcon, play time?"

Falcon's smile faded, and he said, "No… it's all right for a teacher… but come on—school nurse? Isn't very dignified, if you ask me."

"You broke your leg falling off a broom during Quidditch, you git," said Hastings. "Madam Pomfry certainly didn't think she was too dignified to set your bloody bones, did she?"

"You know what I mean," said Falcon, becoming annoyed. "I thought… this is the chance of a lifetime, I thought you'd be happy for me."

"Oh, you misunderstand," said Hastings. "I am simply _thrilled_ that you got this opportunity. Why, now I won't have to see your face every bleeding day!"

"That's my cue," said Odessa. She stood up and walked out the door.

"Are you saying… is this over?"

"You bet," Hastings spat. "First, you're heartless about my sister's death—"

"I never said—"

"Next, you insult the idea of working at Hogwarts! Besides that, you're always trying to calm me down. You want me to be little miss perfect—nice arm candy for you to show off at the Medi-Wizard Ball. I can't be myself around you… you're trying to turn me into a ninny!"

"Hastings, now don't get excited…" said Falcon, making a gesture with his hands that she should quiet down.

"That, in a nutshell, has been our relationship for the past three months, Falcon," she shouted. "You calming me down. You telling me to be quiet. You not accepting who I am!"

Falcon looked at her, his jaw set, and his shoulders squared. He looked hurt as he said, "You know, you're right."

"Well," said Hastings in surprise. "That's something…"

"Not about me being insensitive about your sister, I didn't know and you acted like I should. Nor about my thoughts on Hogwarts – its not the job for me. But you're right that you'll never be proper—or at least act like a grown up. You're too scatter-brained to be with. You're constantly embarrassing me with your laughter and your loudness. I should have gone for Odessa when I had the chance."

"What did you say?" asked Hastings.

"Are you so thick?" asked Falcon. "Odessa Grace—your friend? When Sirius broke up with her because of that letter I wrote, I should have sailed in to console her, but there you were, making everything so—"

"YOU WROTE THAT LETTER?" Hastings yelled. She grabbed her "Magical Me" from her night stand and chucked it at Falcon. "YOU BASTARD! GET OUT! GET OUT!"

Falcon dodged the book, but Hastings grabbed an empty bottle of Butter Beer and hurled that at him as well. It hit him in the arm and fell to the wooden floor, shattering. Falcon didn't say another word, but left her room, shutting the door as Hastings hurled a pillow at it. Livid, she followed him out, and down the stairs to the common room, making sure he was really leaving. She ran up to Odessa's room, threw open the door, and said, "You are _never_ going to believe this!"

Odessa looked up from the book she was thumbing through, "Falcon broke up with you before you could break up with him?"

"No, you nut! He wrote the letter!"

"The one from St. Mungo's? Why would he do that?" Odessa looked confused.

"Not _that_ letter. _The _letter." Odessa still looked puzzled. "The one Sirius found on your desk that caused him to break up with you!"

"You're joking," Odessa said. "Falcon would never do that. He's not that…that underhanded."

"He just told me."

"Just now? As you were breaking his heart he said, 'Oh, by the way, I wrote the letter that caused Odessa and Sirius to break up.' He was mad, he wanted to make you mad and that was the first thing that came to his mind."

"You git," Hastings said, sitting down next to her. "Read my lips: Falcon – the guy I've been dating – wrote – presumably with a quill on a piece of parchment – the letter – a bunch of words put together as a personal note – that caused the break up between you and Sirius – the man you've been madly in love with since we were in school."

"Are you telling me the truth?"

"Yes, of course I am." Hastings said, exasperated. "Why would I lie to you, especially about this?"

"I-I just can't believe that he would do something like that." Odessa said, her eyes starting to fill with tears. "We've been friends since our first day at Hogwarts when I decided to see what would happen if you mixed the ingredients in the wrong order in potions class. He covered up for me when my cauldron exploded. I just…why would he do that?"

"Because he wanted to go out with you."

"Sirius mentioned that Falcon once had a crush on me. But why would he go through all of that trouble and then not swoop in as my hero?"

Hastings shrugged, "I kicked him out of my room before he could explain that part."

Odessa giggled through her tears, "Why am I not surprised?"

Hastings grinned sheepishly, "One day I'll learn to get the whole story before I lose my temper. So, are you going to tell Sirius?"

Odessa thought for a moment, "No, I don't think so. We're just now becoming friends again – I don't know what this news would do to that. Besides, I have to confess that I'd like him to tell me that he's sorry he ever thought I wrote the note without knowing who did. I need him to trust me. Am I just being proud?"  
"Perhaps a little, but I understand. I won't say anything either. I'll leave that up to you."

"Thanks Haste. I appreciate that."

"That's what I'm here for," Hastings said with a grin. "It's been a rather exhausting evening, hasn't it?"

"Yeah, it has. I think I'm going to go to bed." Odessa stood up. "Not that I'll sleep, but, I just need time by myself."

"I understand. Night."

"G'night."

"Why are you leaving tonight?" Sirius asked Falcon as he helped him pack his bags.

"I want to get settled in my new flat before I start. And since I start the day after tomorrow, I thought I'd get a head start and leave tonight."  
"You're just avoiding Hastings, aren't you?"

Falcon grinned, "Perhaps a little. I wasn't expecting that reaction. You know, I really liked her a lot. I thought there was something real there."

"You'll know when you find it mate." Sirius said.

"That's what they all say." Falcon replied. "But do you really know?"

Sirius nodded, thinking of Odessa, "Yeah, I think you do."

Falcon threw his last shirt into his trunk and stood up. "Well, I'll be seeing you mate. I've already told Minerva I'm leaving tonight. She said the new replacement will be here tomorrow. I hope it's someone good."

"Yeah – you just don't want anyone better than you in the position."

"Sirius, I don't think there's anyone better than me. I just got chosen for the internship."

"Well, don't let that big head of yours topple you over."

Falcon laughed, "I won't. I'll bee seeing you." He grabbed his trunk and walked out the door.


	14. Chapter 14

"Thank you everyone for coming on such short notice." Minerva said the next morning in the teacher's lounge. "Before I start, are there any announcements?"

Odessa looked up, "Um, some of my potions, and potion ingredients have gone missing. First it was veritiserum, and now the ingredients for Gravatus have disappeared. If you notice any students becoming ill please let me know."

Minerva nodded, "Thank you for letting us know, Odessa. Have you put extra spells around your office?"

"Yes, I have. Anyone who has suddenly gone bald is suspect as well." The other teachers laughed at this.

"Well, if there's nothing else," Minerva glanced around the room, "then it's my pleasure to introduce our new medi-wizard. Falcon was given an extraordinary opportunity to be the head Medi-Wizard's intern and left immediately, with my blessing. Gabriel Lupin has agreed to take his place. Gabriel, please come in."

A man who was about 6 feet tall with broad shoulders and longish, wavy brown hair walked into the room. Odessa glanced at him and ribbed Hastings hard.

"Ouch," she whispered.

"He's a babe," Odessa whispered back.

"I can see that." Hastings said, looking him up and down. "But I thought you said you were going to stop matching me with people."

"I don't have any recollection of that conversation." Odessa said.

"Okay everyone," Minerva said, "That's all for now. We better get some breakfast before classes start.

Odessa stood and rushed over to Gabriel, "Hi Gabriel, I'm Odessa Grace, the potions teacher. I thought I should introduce myself because I'm sure we'll be working together a lot."

Gabriel smiled, showing a row of perfect teeth, "It's a pleasure. And I prefer Gabe, if you don't mind."

"And this is my friend, Hastings, the DADA teacher." Odessa said, grabbing Hastings arm and pulling her next to her.

"Lovely to meet you," Hastings sputtered out, glaring at Odessa.

"Oh, I left my lesson plan in my room. You two head to breakfast, I'll meet you there." With one last smile at Hastings, Odessa flew out of the room.

"So," said Gabe. "You teach Defense?"

"Um, yes," said Hastings, gathering her robe before her and folding her arms.

"That's pretty great," he said, "I wanted to be an Auror when I was younger."

"Really?" asked Hastings, only halfway interested. Spying Minerva, and looking for any excuse not to talk to Gabe, she called out, "Minerva!"

"Why, hello, Hastings," said McGonagall. "I see that you and Mr. Lupin are getting well acquainted. You know, he was on the Curse Reversal team at St. Mungo's. I'm sure you'll find you have much in common."

Gabe smiled, showing his perfect teeth again, and a rather stubborn dimple in his left cheek that Hastings decided was rather annoying.

"Both of his parents were in the Order of the Phoenix, and—"

"Wait a minute," said Hastings. "I know who you are. Your father taught here for a year, didn't he?"

"Yup," said Gabe, still flashing a smile that made him resemble Gilderoy Lockheart.

"Your mum was Nymphadora Tonks!" Hastings exclaimed, brightening. "I have every book she's written on defense and magical concealment! Wow!"

Gabe laughed at her excitement, "Glad you approve of my family." They walked down together, chatting about defensive magic and the many things Hastings had learned from reading his mother's books.

"Wait a minute," said Hastings. "Your mum's most recent book, 'So I Married a Werewolf,' that was an autobiography, wasn't it?"

Gabe nodded, still in a lighthearted mood.

Hastings sat at the teachers' table in her usual seat. "Not to pry… but what does that make you?"

Gabe plopped down next to her and said, "Half-wolf," and winked at her. In spite of herself, Hastings felt her heart thump as he beamed at her. She tried not to look at him as he piled his plate with an impossible amount of food. She tried her best not to take too much on her plate, attempting to eat like a lady, and not like a starved dog. But her appetite got the better of her as they chatted about this and that, and before she knew it, she'd had several helpings of eggs, bacon and biscuits. "You certainly have a healthy appetite," Gabe remarked, his own mouth full of sausage.

Hastings was mortified, and she set down her fork and knife, which were about to dive into some hash browns.

Gabe, who didn't seem to notice her embarrassment, said, "That's great. Girls never eat enough—always on these fad diets or only eating salad. It isn't healthy. You need a balanced meal, to… oh, that's the medical training getting away with me again…" He smiled sheepishly and took a large gulp of pumpkin juice.

Sipping from her own glass of Pumpkin Juice Hastings mentally placed her name with his last name and wondering what their children would look like. She was shaken from her reverie when Odessa plopped down next to her on the other side.

"What did I miss?"

"Oh," said Hastings, feeling completely stupid, "Nothing. What took you so long?"

"Oh," said Odessa, suddenly blushing and smiling uncontrollably. "I just… had a chat with Sir—one of the teachers… for a minute."

Hastings looked over to where Odessa was staring and saw Sirius across the hall, talking to a third year Ravenclaw about an assignment. He glanced over to the Odessa and winked, then returned his attention to the student.

"Sounds like a little more than talking," said Hastings, thinking that everything was right with the world.

"Just you never mind," said Odessa. "What's Gabe like?"

"He's… you know…" But Hastings couldn't help smiling.

"I'm not saying a word," said Odessa, "Not a single word… except that he seems to be a very good ma—"

"Shut up, Ode," Said Hastings, covering her friend's mouth. "You'll jinx me."

"Gabe rhymes with babe, you know…"

"Shut up, Ode!"

Smiling devilishly at her, Odessa leaned over, "So do you like the food here, Gabe?"

"It's great. Much better than hospital food."

"So why'd you choose to come here?" Odessa asked.

"I've always wanted to work here, are you kidding?" Gabriel said. "There's just never been an opening before. Is it bad that I'm hoping the nurse will decide not to come back?"

Odessa shrugged, "As long as you don't curse her to make sure she doesn't return, then no, it's not a bad thing."

Gabriel laughed, "I'll remember that next time I'm tempted to pull my wand out so that I can keep my job. Anyway, I better get to the hospital wing and familiarize myself with it. It was nice to meet you both."

"Nice to meet you too," Odessa said with a broad grin and a glance at Hastings.

"Yes, it was lovely," Hastings said, trying not to glare at Odessa.

"You know," Odessa said as Gabriel walked away, "he's not bad from behind either."

Hastings smiled, "One of the better behinds I've seen. So, what happened with Sirius?"

"It's nothing as exciting as you seem to think. We just ran into each other and it was so nice to be able to speak with him as a friend again. And…I'm going with him to Hogsmeade this weekend to buy some supplies."

"He asked you on a date?" Hastings squealed.

"Um, no. A date is dinner, or coffee or something like that. He asked to go supply shopping, that's much different. Especially since he told me to ask you to come as well."

"Well, I'm busy this weekend."

"Too bad," Odessa said. "Sirius is going to bring Gabriel along."

"Why?"

"Oh, come on, do you even have to ask? Remus Lupin is Gabriel's father. Harry Potter is Sirius' father. They've known each other for ages. They've never really hung out since Gabe's a few years older, but they know each other. And Sirius thought it'd be a nice gesture to ask him to come with us since we're the only other teachers here even close to his age. And…" Odessa took a deep breath, "ItoldSiriusyouthinkGabe'sababe."

"You did what?"

Odessa grinned, "I told Sirius that you think Gabe's a babe. Wow, you could turn that into a song."

"I'm going to kill you Odessa."

"You know you love me Hastings," Odessa chimed back. "Besides, you don't have time to kill me at the moment. It's time for class. See ya later."

Hastings nodded curtly but couldn't help grinning. She couldn't wait for Saturday.


	15. Chapter 15

"Where are they?" Hastings asked as she and Odessa waited for the boys on the front lawn.

"Making themselves pretty," Odessa said.

"We could never be as lovely as you," a voice whispered in her ear. Odessa jumped.

"There you are. Where's Gabe?"

Sirius shrugged, "Stopped in the loo. Here he comes."

"Thanks for inviting me along," Gabriel said, joining them.

"No problem, shall we?" Odessa said, starting down the path. "Oh, did I tell you guys what happened yesterday?"

"No," Sirius said, just as Hastings said, "Yes."

"I didn't?" Odessa said, falling into step with Sirius. "O'Reilly was in my classroom. He said he was just watching me, but I don't know. Something's seriously wrong with that man. He kept criticizing me in front of my students. And between classes he spent a lot of time in my store room. I wonder if he's the one stealing the potions. Hi Jade!" Odessa called out as they passed the greenhouse. Professor Greene waved in return. "What do you think?" She asked Sirius.

"Why would he steal your potions? He's perfectly able to make them on his own."

"I know. That's what doesn't make sense. But why is he so insistent about watching me this year? He's got something up his sleeve."

"He probably has a crush on you." Sirius said.

"You think everyone has a crush on me," Odessa said. "It's your answer to everything. Trust me, I'm not that popular." They walked on for a few minutes in silence, falling behind Hastings and Gabriel who were deep in conversation.

"Why?" Odessa said suddenly, "Are you jealous."

"Who me, get jealous. Never." Sirius replied.

Odessa snorted, "Yeah right. Forgive me, I forgot who I was talking to."

"Look, Odessa," Sirius grabbed her hand and stopped her. Odessa's breath caught in her throat. "I never…I never thought you wrote that letter in the first place."

"What? What do you mean you never thought I wrote it? You went ballistic over it." Odessa stared at him in disbelief, trying to ignore the feeling of her hand in his.

"I know I did. It was a gut reaction. The thought of losing you again…I couldn't handle it. I overreacted."

"Just a little," Odessa said sarcastically.

"Are you going to let me say what I'm going to say or are you going to keep interrupting?"

"Sorry." Odessa said quietly.

"The more I thought about it the more I convinced myself that you had written it. It was easy to do since I didn't see you after that. But when I saw you at the ball, well, it was hard. And then you refused to dance with me."

"So you made out with Chantrell."

"You cursed the floor," Sirius shot back.

"You deserved it."

"So you seem to think. But let me continue, please." Sirius took a deep breath, "After that night I wanted you to suffer, just like I had suffered. The prank war was the perfect opportunity. And then, that night you blew up at me, I realized just how much I had hurt you. That it wasn't just me who had been hurt. And the nagging little voice in the back of my head that kept telling me you didn't write the letter kept getting louder. But you wouldn't talk to me. You wouldn't even stay in the same room with me. It was Falcon's idea to send the rose."

"Really?" Odessa asked, surprised.

"Yeah, he's been a great friend through all of this. Anyway, ever since you've started speaking to me again I've been trying to find the right time to say that I'm sorry I ever thought that you wrote that letter. And to say that I do trust you. And…" Sirius grabbed her other hand, "to ask if you would take back a jerk like me?"

Odessa stared at their hands for a minute, trying to blink back her tears before she looked up at him. "Yes," she whispered, still looking down.

"Yes?' Sirius asked. Odessa nodded. Sirius kissed the top of her head and then slowly raised her head so that she was looking at him, tears streaming down her face.

"Is it really that terrible of a thing?" He asked, amused.

Odessa giggled and shook her head. Sirius smiled and slowly bent over and kissed her. His arms went around her and Odessa sank into him for a moment.

"Oi!" They heard someone shout. Breaking apart they looked around, A moment later Hastings appeared around a bend ahead of them. "What're you guys doing? Come on."

Odessa smiled, "Sorry about that. Sirius was…um…showing me this flower…which I think I dropped." With a quick smile at Sirius, they started walking towards Hastings, hand in hand. Noticing this, Hastings have Odessa a quick smile and turned to catch up to Gabriel, who was waiting for her.

The four of them finished shopping for supplies, amidst several students. It was the first Hogsmeade weekend, and they were surrounded by school-age dramas and laughter. They stepped into the Three Broomsticks for bottles of butter beer before heading back to the school. Sirius and Odessa were talking quietly while Hastings and Gabriel were in the middle of a heated debate.

"So, you really think that Bat-Bogey Hex Gum is better than a joke wand that turns into a rubber chicken?" Hastings asked Gabriel.

"I do," said Gabriel. "People start sliming from the mouth… it's amazing stuff. Brilliant, really."

"Come on, though," said Hastings. "You can't deny the joking power of a rubber chicken. It's classic!"

"Oh, please," said Gabriel. "It's a joke of the past. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes went way beyond that elementary stuff."

"I'm only saying that you shouldn't underestimate simplicity. It's effective in all sorts of pranking. Let's ask Odessa's opinion." Hastings looked toward the other two, who were oblivious to everything around them. "I guess not," said Hastings, turning back to Gabriel.

"What's this all about?" asked Sirius.

"Bat-Bogey or Rubber Chicken?" asked Gabriel.

"Canary Crème," said Sirius. "No contest."

"Philistine," said Hastings, "You have no idea what you're talking about."

Odessa joined the conversation. "What's this about, anyway?"

"Well," said Hastings. "I confiscated tons of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes merchandize this week. In fact, I took away more this week than I normally take in a year."

"Halloween's only a week away," Odessa pointed out. "_And_, it's on a Friday this year. They're probably excited about the school dance…and the possibility to embarrass one another in such a public place."

"I can't believe they get to have a dance," said Gabriel. "When I was here, that never would have happened."

"Speaking of which," said Hastings. "You had to be here when we were. Why did we never meet before?"

"I was four years ahead of you, and a Ravenclaw. I was kind of snobby back then."

"I remember you," said Odessa. "You had your own entourage. There was nothing you could do that would get you in trouble. Us underlings didn't dare talk to you."

"Oh," said Gabe, turning a little red. "I wasn't that bad, was I?"

"You were a ruddy prat," said Sirius. "You'd hang out with me all summer, be my best friend, then all but ignore me at school. Thoughts on your studies, or your friends. You didn't even engage in a little mischief from time to time. What was your problem?"

"Hung around the wrong crowd, I guess," said Gabe with a smile. "Is there hope for me now that I've started to hang around you hoodlums?"

"A little," said Hastings.

"So," said Odessa, "are you guys going to the dance?"

"Of course," said Sirius, "I have to chaperone. Otherwise, I'd have asked you to go with me."

Odessa smiled brilliantly and turned to Hastings, "What about you two?"

"Most likely," said Gabe. "Someone'll probably hurt themselves trying to bust a move…" Hastings nearly spit out her butter beer as she laughed, and hastily wiped her chin. Everyone else laughed at her.

"Hastings," said Odessa, between peals of laughter. "Are you going?"

"Can't," said Hastings. "Professor Greene is harvesting Blood Lilies. They only bloom on Halloween night. She asked me to go with her. I guess she wants the protection of the, uh… resident Kick Ass Witch." The four of them cracked up.

"Sorry you have to do that," said Gabe. "Would've been fun. Tell you what… if things look a little slow, I'll come down and help."

Hastings's heart jumped at hearing him say this, maybe he did like her. "Well, I would be much obliged, Mr. Lupin," she said cheesily.

As they walked back, Odessa grabbed Hastings's arm and pulled her back to talk in semi-private. "_I would be much obliged, Mr. Lupin?_ Laying it on a little thick, aren't we?"

"Oh, be quiet," said Hastings. "It's not like _you_ two weren't nauseating to watch all throughout lunch. _'Oh, Sirius! You're the man of my dreams! I want to kiss you and marry you and have all your little Potter babies, and—_'" Odessa punched her hard in the arm, and Hastings shut up.

"Don't even pretend you're not smitten with him," said Odessa.

"He's a friend," said Hastings. "He's funny, and he's not a bore, like what's-his-name."

"Forgotten Falcon so soon?" asked Odessa.

"Yes, thank goodness," said Hastings. "I'm not going to deny that there's a certain… _attractive_ quality about Gabe—"

"Attractive, nothing," said Odessa, "You just want to jump his—"

"But," Hastings interrupted, "I'm done with medi-wizards… no matter how charming they are, and how nicely their eyes glow in the right light, and how cute their… assets are."  
"Assets?" asked Odessa, smiling slyly, "Nice term for it. Too bad you won't be at the ball, looking all cute for him in pink dress robes…"

"I wouldn't wear pink if my life depended on it," said Hastings. "Maybe a nice, sleek black dress with a side slit… but never pink."

"I'm willing to bet Lupin loves pink," said Odessa. "Didn't his mother have pink hair all the time?"

"Great, I wear pink and I remind him of his mother. That'll do the trick, Ode. I can see it now…"

"Just a suggestion."

"Why are you on me about this, anyway?" asked Hastings. "Going out with him would ruin things… I get bored too easily, you know that."

"You really have to get over that if you ever expect to be happily married," said Odessa.

"Who said anything about being married? I just want a nice bit of man-candy…"

"Are you two coming?" called Gabe, who was far up the street, talking to Sirius. He turned around and walked backward as he asked them.

"On our way," Hastings called back.

"Just don't want you to get lost," he called back, and winked, flashing them his best smile.

"Mmm-mmm," said Odessa. "Looks like that shouldn't be allowed. A pity you don't just claim him here and now"

"Come on," said Hastings. "He's not my type."

"Yeah, perpetual bedroom eyes, long hair, bad-boy disposition… you're absolutely right. Who'd want a guy like that?" Odessa replied sarcastically.

Hastings stared at Odessa for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Let's just catch up before your lover boy starts wondering if you've left him for me, okay?"

"Well, okay," said Odessa, sounding pathetic, "But my heart belongs to you, you know…"

"Who loves ya, babe?" joked Hastings. The two girls jogged to catch up with the men, and they walked together back to Hogwarts.


	16. Chapter 16

"Why'd I agree to help Jade with the blood lilies?" Hastings whined to Odessa. "Now I'm in ugly, dirty clothes with my hair in a stupid ponytail and all of my make-up'll be gone within fifteen minutes."

Odessa laughed, "It's not that bad Hastings. You could have to chaperone the students."

"I'd rather do that, Hastings said. "Then I would have a reason to zap them with my wand."

"Why'd Jade want you to go with her anyway?"

"It's in the middle of the forest and I'm the DADA teacher."

"I could go in your stead," Odessa offered. "Sirius will be busy zapping students. Not like I'm going to be having a whole lot of fun."

"Thanks Odessa, but no. I remember your defense techniques. Wasn't hiding under the desk one of them?"

"Shut up! I was never that bad."

Hastings looked at her.

"Okay, so I hid a few times. But it was always in a closet. I wasn't stupid enough to think that a desk would protect me. Well, strike that. I did try to transfigure the desk into a dog to protect me. Only half worked. Poor thing had a desk for a head. Didn't know where to go. But I'm better now."

"Please Odessa, I don't want your life on my hands. I'll go."

"Okay, but don't forget I offered."

"I won't. Now you better get down there."

"How do I look?" Odessa asked, twirling so that her turquoise dress robes flared out and then settled softly around her legs."

"Beautiful, as always."

"Yeah right. I'm beginning to think you just say that to make me feel better."

"Believe what you want. But I can guarantee that Sirius will think you look perfect."

Odessa smiled dreamily, "Gotta love a man who's blind to the truth of how you look. Have fun with Jade."

"Tons." Hastings said, wrinkling her nose. Odessa waved and disappeared. Hastings took another look in the mirror. She didn't know whether she should pray that Gabe showed up or that he didn't. "You don't like him anyway, remember?" She said to herself as she made her way out. Passing the Great Hall she peered in and saw the students staring at each other awkwardly, no one willing to be the first to dance. Laughing, she stepped outside and met Professor Greene at Greenhouse two.

"Thanks for helping me Hastings, I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome. It's not like I had a date to the dance." Hastings said, glancing back at the school.

"I'm surprised to hear it. Well, Gabe Lupin didn't either and he offered to come help. He should be here in a moment."

Hastings felt her heart flutter, "Did he? That was nice."

"I thought so." Jade gathered up her trowl and a box full of pots to place the lilies in.

"Here, let me carry that," a deep voice said from the darkness. Gabe stepped out of the shadows and took the box from Professor Greene."

"Thank you Gabe, I appreciate that. Do we have everything? Good. Let's go." The three of them headed into the forest with Hastings in the middle.

"So what's the lily used for?" Gabe asked. "I know it's deadly if it's consumed. And it causes welts or boils if used on the skin."

"It's used mostly in the dark arts," Hastings replied. "It can be used for mind control, although it's not as effective as the Imperius Curse. It's a bit less noticeable though, especially to the person being affected. If mixed correctly, it can be used for torture. It's not a very pleasant plant overall."

"Then why are we picking it?" Gabe asked. Hastings shrugged.

"For my seventh year NEWT students to study," Professor Greene called over her shoulder. "It's good for them to be able to recognize it. It is deadly in large doses, but in small doses it won't kill someone. After they're done studying it I'll destroy them. But I think it's important for students to be able to recognize it, and books aren't always the most helpful. Oh, here we are." Professor Greene pointed to a clearing up ahead. Hastings looked up but there were only trees overhead. She heard some rustling in the bushes and the howl of a few creatures. She checked the moon, it was only half full.

Odessa giggled as Sirius spun her around, "Aren't you supposed to be chaperoning?"

"I am. I'm showing them how to treat a lady." Sirius dipped her, "and a lovely one at that."

Odessa beamed at him, "You're too sweet. I'm just glad this dance is finally taking off. I thought the students were going to spend the whole night staring at each other."

"I know. It was getting frightfully boring. But now," Sirius glanced around, "it's about perfect. And in another hour I'll have to start really chaperoning."

The music stopped and Sirius led Odessa to a table. "I'm going to make a quick round. Wait here for me?" Sirius kissed her hand and left. Odessa smiled and looked around the room. It was fun to watch the guys trying to get up enough nerve to ask a certain girl to dance. She wondered how many had come with partners.

"All alone?" O'Reilly sat down at her table.

"No." Odessa said. "I'm waiting for Sirius.

"Are you and that young man back together again? I thought you had better taste Miss Grace."

"I have great taste, thank you very much," Odessa said as a new song started.

"Well then, may I have this dance?" O'Reilly asked.  
"What?" Odessa was sure she had misheard him.

"May I have this dance?"

"Why would you want to dance with someone as incompetent as me?"

"Because you're beautiful. Come, we can talk about potions and your students."

"I'd rather not." Odessa replied.

O'Reilly sneered, "I see. You're all moral now."

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"I know why you and Sirius broke up several months ago. Don't pretend to be all innocent to me Odessa Grace. I know you better than that."

Odessa blushed, "If I were you, I wouldn't presume anything. Excuse me please." She stood up abruptly and headed towards the bathroom, avoiding Moaning Myrtle's. The conversation about Sirius had not gone well and Myrtle was rather upset with Odessa. "I hope things are going better for Hastings." She said into the mirror as she studied her make-up. "Of course, lately, things always go better for Hastings at dances than with me, even when she's not there." Odessa glanced at her watch, "I hope she can stop by and see Gabe. Thinking of, I haven't seen him tonight." A toilet flushed and Odessa jumped,

"Were you speaking to me? A sixth year who Odessa didn't know asked.

"Um, no. Just to my reflection." Odessa grinned, embarrassed.

"Oh," the sixth year, washing her hands. "Well, I hope you enjoy the conversation."

"Thanks," Odessa said to the retreating back. "Where's Hastings when I need her?" Odessa glanced at her watch again and made her way back into the Great Hall. She didn't want Sirius to wonder what happened to her.


	17. Chapter 17

Hastings was covering her mouth and nose at the sudden, unmistakable odor of old blood.

"Everything okay?" asked Gabe.

"Mm-hmm," said Hastings. "I just need to breathe through my mouth." She took a deep breath, trying to look the other way. Professor Greene had shown no hesitation when she saw the blood lilies. In the half-light, they looked like ordinary—though beautiful—white Calla Lilies, shining with beaded dew on their trumpet petals. Professor Green took a small, hand-held scythe—the kind used in harvesting grapes—and cut the lily just above the base, near the earth. There was a sickening, spilling sound of thick liquid onto the dirt, and Hastings had to turn around.

"Hand me a bottle, would you?" asked Jade to no one in particular. Gabe, noticing that Hastings was about to be sick, grabbed a bottle and handed it to Jade. "Thank you," said Jade. "They're easy enough to handle once they start gushing, but I hate to waste this sap. Works in many antidotes, as well as being a slow-working poison."

"That's fascinating," said Hastings, sucking air through her teeth.

"Are you sure you're okay?" asked Gabe, who walked over to her and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Oh yeah, I'm great. Just famous—really."

"Is it… the smell?" asked Gabe.

"Yes," said Hastings. "I smelled it when… well, a long time ago. Can't stand it now."

Gabe moved a little closer and said softly, "When… when your sister was killed?"

Hastings shot him a look, "How did you know?" she whispered.

"Sirius told me," said Gabe. "I hope you're not mad at him. He said something about checking my compassion skills before he let me hang around you. I think he's appointed himself as your big brother or something."

"That's… that's really sweet," said Hastings.

"Yeah, it is. But I can see why he feels so protective." They both smiled at each other and then stared at the ground.

"Well," Hastings said, trying to cover up the awkward silence that followed, "thanks for your concern. Yes… there was… blood when she… when my sister died."

"I'm so sorry," said Gabe quietly.

There was the sound of something dropping to the ground. "Curses!" Professor Greene said. She'd accidentally dropped her scythe, and the blood lily she was working on squirted on her robes. "It'll never wash out."

Gabe absently patted Hastings's back and then walked over to Jade. "Let me help you with that."

Hastings took a few more breaths through her mouth, glad that Gabe was here. So much for her ability to protect Professor Greene, should she need it. A breeze blew toward her, rustling the leaves of the trees, and Hastings caught another whiff of the blood lily, though by now they were mostly contained, and Jade and Gabe were cleaning up. Hastings felt her mouth start to water, and she walked several feet away, trying to breathe slowly through her mouth and get fresh air into her system. But wherever she walked, the wretched smell of blood seemed to follow her, gripping at her nostrils.

Her mouth watered even more, and her stomach churned like a tide pool during a storm. Mortified, but unable to control it, she vomited promptly on the ground before her.

"Hastings!" Gabe called, jogging over to her. "I knew you weren't okay. We need to get you out of here. Are you almost done, Professor?"

"Just finished," said Jade, picking up her rucksack and shouldering it. "Thank you dears, we can go now."

"Thanks for what?" asked Hastings, wiping her mouth with her sleeve, and then spitting the foul taste in the dirt. "I didn't help at all."

"Nonsense," said Professor Greene. "I'm sure you'd have done your duty if we were in any real danger. Don't feel bad. There are few people who can stand strong smells."

"Yeah," Gabe agreed, "I think a good ninety percent of them are either Herbologists or Medi-Wizards."

"It doesn't bother you?" asked Hastings, walking back with them.

"Nah," said Gabe. "I've smelled worse things… believe me." As they walked, Gabe's hand rested protectively on her middle back. Hastings tried to turn her attention away from it.

"Yeah? Like what?" She asked.

"Bubotuber puss, for one thing," said Gabe, wrinkling his nose.

"Oh, I agree," said Professor Greene cheerfully. "Like rancid cat urine. But, of course, Mandrake seed oil is equally nauseating."

Hastings had smelled Mandrake seed oil before; it smelled like a baby's diaper. Her stomach started churning again, "Maybe we should change the subject and move just a little faster…"

"Oh," said Gabe, "Sorry about that."

"That's okay," said Hastings, longing for the open air of the Hogwarts grounds instead of the stifling enclosure of the Forbidden Forest. "I just don't want to… want to…" She cleared her throat and looked at Gabe. "Excuse me," she said, and bent double to be sick again. Luckily, Gabe dodged her line of fire, side-stepping it. Unfortunately, he side-stepped into a patch of Dream Ivy. "Oh! I'm so sorry, Gabe!" Hastings said.

Gabe stepped out of the patch and said, "Oh, that's okay, it's only—" Suddenly, he fell to the ground with a thud, fast asleep.

"Ooh, the Dream Ivy's particularly strong this time of year!" said Jade, ignoring the fact that a man who almost outweighed the both of them in muscle had just fallen to the ground.

"Oh, no!" Hastings exclaimed.

"Yes, well," said Jade, "I suppose this is rather a damned nuisance."

"Maybe I should run and get Hagrid Junior." said Hastings.

"Oh, well, if you think you can manage, dear," said Jade, sidetracked.

Hastings looked down the path. The light from Hagrid's hut was just barely visible. "I'm sure I can," she said. "The fresh air will do me good. Besides, there's no way we can get him back to the castle by ourselves."

"Well, in that case, I'm going to take some time to harvest a little of this Dream Ivy."

"Don't touch it with your bare hands," said Hastings.

"Oh, I won't," said Jade, "Though, of course Hagrid could carry the both of us back in one hand."

It was true, thought Hastings as she jogged along the path to Hagrid's hut. But if Greene were to touch the Ivy, they'd be at the mercy of the forest until she got back with Hagrid.

Hastings was relieved when she finally came out onto the grounds and ran the rest of the way to Hagrid's hut. But her heart sank when she saw a note on the door.

Gone to Hogsmeade for the weekend.

All questions pertaining to grounds-keeping should be addressed to the Headmistress.

Have a happy Halloween!

-Hagrid Jr.

"You've got to be kidding me!" said Hastings. Glancing back into the forest and already feeling a stitch in her side, she decided the only thing she could do was get help from Odessa and Sirius. She didn't dare risk calling out to Jade through the forest—that could be dangerous. If only she had some Ministry Memo paper with her that she could use to make a note to fly to Jade and let her know she'd gone to get help. She glanced at the note again and tore it from Hagrid's door while grabbing a stub of chalk from her last class in her pocket. She hastily scribbled a note on the reverse side, then rolled it up into a ball. She stood facing where she knew Professor Greene and the sleeping Gabe to be, and tapped the ball with her wand, muttering, "_Abiego_!" the repelling spell. It went about ten feet, then hit a tree and fell to the ground. "Stupid paper!" cursed Hastings. "_Accio_!" It flew back to her and she caught it. She moved again, this time, accounting for trees in the way, and said, "_Abiego_," again. This time, it flew through the air and hit Professor Greene in the head. "Good enough," said Hastings, and ran to the castle to find Odessa and Sirius.

"You found the students doing what?" Odessa asked, trying not to laugh.

"They were trying to-"

"Sirius! Odessa! I'm so glad you're here," Hastings called as she ran up to them, out of breath."

"What happened?" Asked Sirius, taking in Hastings dirty robes and catching the smell of something rather foul.

"It's Gabe. He stepped in some Dream Ivy. Hagrid Jr. is in Hogsmeade and I need help bringing him back."

Sirius looked confused, "Why don't you just use levicorpus on him?"

"Because…because I didn't think about it," Hastings said looking at the ground, embarrassed. Sirius started laughing.

"Don't laugh at her, you git." Odessa said, hitting him on the arm. "Don't worry Hastings, I know everything seems a bit scarier in the forest." She paused for a moment, "Too bad you didn't have a wardrobe to hide him in."

"Shut up you ninny," Hastings said, starting to laugh at herself. "I was so concerned with how I was going to carry him back that I forgot I have a wand."

"Where's Jade?" Odessa asked.

Hastings rolled her eyes, "Engrossed with the Dream Ivy. I don't even think she noticed that Gabe was lying there."

Sirius smiled, "I'm not surprised. I've known that woman ever since I started working here, and she's more dedicated than Professor Sprout. It's almost funny. I'll go with you."

"Me too," Odessa piped up.

"You really don't have to," Hastings protested. "I mean-" A loud thump interrupted her, followed by a scream. The three of them turned to the front of the room to see Professor McGonagall lying on the floor with O'Reilly kneeling over her.


	18. Chapter 18

"Professor!" shouted Sirius, Hastings, and Odessa at once. They rushed to her side, Odessa glaring at Professor O'Reilly.

"What happened?" she asked. "What did you do?"

"It's bad manners to assume that I did any—" said O'Reilly.

"Oh, dry up," said Sirius. "Curse Gabe for falling in that stupid Dream Ivy. We need someone with medical training."

"The only other person would be Professor Greene," said Hastings. "Who's with Gabe."

"Hang on," said Odessa. "Why wouldn't Greene know to perform the Levicorpus on him?"

"She wanted to harvest the Dream Ivy," said Hastings.

"Ooh, all Herbologists are alike," said Odessa, remembering one she'd dated in between her stints with Sirius. "They never seem to—"

"This isn't helping Professor McGonagall," said Professor O'Reilly with infuriating logic. "Why don't you all go and bring Professors Lupin and Greene back, then I will administer a Waking Draught—"

"Excuse me," said Odessa, "But I'm the Potions Master here. It will be me who administers what needs to be… um, administered."

O'Reilly turned toward her with impatience in his eyes, speaking with barely veiled disgust. "Then act like it!" Without another word, Hastings, Sirius, and Odessa ran out the Great Hall, in pursuit of Gabe and Jade.

"Should we have left O'Reilly alone with her?" Odessa asked, looking back at the castle.

"He won't do anything right now," Sirius assured her. "Not when all of the students and faculty are watching. Besides, he knows we're onto him."

When they reached Hagrid's hut, they saw Professor Greene coming out of the forest with Gabe floating behind her.

"Thanks, Jade," said Hastings. "I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

"It's nothing, dear," said Professor Greene. "After I received your note, I packed up some Dream Ivy in a hurry, resolving to come after you. I realize you were a little… distraught, having forgotten to use the Levicorpus."

"But… you thought of it, couldn't you have told Hastings?" asked Odessa, suddenly suspicious of everyone and everything.

"Well, let's just get him to the hospital wing," said Jade. "Oh, I sure could use some pumpkin juice. Let's go in. It's chilly out here." Together, they brought Gabe into the school while they told Professor Greene what had happened at the ball. When they arrived at the hospital wing Professor O'Reilly was already there, brewing some Waking Draught.

"Like I'm going to trust anything he brews," Odessa muttered.

"Odessa," Sirius said quietly, placing his hand on her arm. "I know you don't like the man, but he's perfectly competent."

"It's not his competence that concerns me," Odessa said. Sirius shot her a look, but before he could say anything, Professor McGonagall slowly sat up.

"What happened?" She asked, looking around.

"You passed out," Hastings said, stepping forward and taking her hand. Do you feel okay."

"Yes, I'm fine," Professor McGonagall answered briskly, shaking aside Hastings hand. "I've just been feeling a little under the weather."

"Professor, are you okay?" Gabe came up to her side and felt her pulse.

"Are you okay," Hastings interjected, looking at Gabe.

"Yes, I'm fine. The Waking Draught worked perfectly. Silly of me to walk into Dream Ivy." Gabe spoke as he checked Professor McGonagall out. "Looks like you might have the flu. I haven't seen a case of that in years and I'm afraid I'm low on the remedy. Odessa, would you go brew some please?" Odessa nodded and left. "In the meantime," Gabe continued, "Minerva needs to rest. The potion will be ready in about an hour. You'll need to take some tonight and the rest tomorrow morning."

"I'm not a child Mr. Lupin," Professor McGonagall said, a bit irritable.

"No, but you are my patient. So please, stay here until Odessa comes with the potion. Then you can go up to your room. I want to make sure you don't faint again. Why don't the rest of you leave so Minerva can have some peace." It was more than a command than a request. O'Reilly scowled and marched out the door.

"Well, at least he's gone," Hastings said to Sirius as he offered her his arm.

"Not a very pleasant bloke," Sirius said with a grin, offering Professor Greene his other arm. "Please allow me to escort you back to your rooms."

"Thank you Sirius," Professor Greene said, "but I really must get the ivy and the lilies to the greenhouse. Thanks for your help Hastings."

"You're welcome," Hastings said, as Sirius walked down the hall with her. She threw a final glance back towards the hospital wing, hoping to catch one more glance of Gabe.

"Got a bit of a crush?" Sirius asked, smiling down at her.

Hastings blushed, "Well, he is cute."

"Uh huh," Sirius said, still smiling at her.

"And the way he took command of the whole situation was really attractive." Hastings added. "Oh, and he didn't get grossed out when I threw up everywhere."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine now. It's the stupid blood lilies." Hastings stopped, "Why don't you go assure the students that everything is fine and then go pay Odessa a visit. I'm sure she'd appreciate it. Besides, I need to stop by my classroom before going to my room I left the papers my sixth years turned in today there."

"You sure?"

"Positive." Hastings said. Have a good night."

"You too," Sirius said, heading towards the Great Hall.

Hastings hummed to herself as she made her way up to the third floor. Tonight had turned out much better than she thought. She closed her eyes and remembered the way Gabe had just walked up to Minerva like nothing was wrong with him and taken care of her. Opening her eyes up quickly before her imagination took over, and before she ran into anything, she smiled to herself. "Not too bad, Miss Applespice," she said. "Not too bad at all." Hastings reached out and opened her classroom door. She could hear rummaging inside her office. She pulled out her wand and whispered, "Lumos."


	19. Chapter 19

Quietly, she tiptoed to her office and peered in, only to see O'Reilly rummaging through her cupboard.

Surprised, Hastings asked, "May I help you?" She folded her arms and cocked her head, waiting for him to turn around.

"Ah, here it is," said O'Reilly, pulling out a book and placing it on the desk. It looked as if he hadn't even heard her. He opened the book, licked his thumb, and started to turn pages.

"Um…" said Hastings, dumbfounded. "May I help you?" she asked again.

O'Reilly looked up, exasperated, as though she'd been a student interrupting him.

"No thanks," he said, then looked at his book again.

"Maybe you misunderstood me, professor," she said, "You are in my office. After hours. Going through my things. Without permission."

"Yes, Miss Applespice," said O'Reilly, still refusing to look at her. "And it would seem that your acute powers of observation have not diminished over the years since you were in my Potions class." He turned a few more pages as Hastings stood there, sputtering in her confusion.

"Do you mind," she said, not bothering to hide her sarcasm, "if I asked you why you're here?"

"Ah, finally asked the right question," said O'Reilly, making Hastings want to slap the smug look off his face. "I am here to find out some information about certain types of dragon scales. The Defense Against the Dark Arts library is very extensive in this area. I have a feeling that it might be causing Professor McGonagall's illness."

"Why didn't you just ask me to get it for you?" asked Hastings.

"Because you were otherwise indisposed," said O'Reilly. "When I worked here, the teachers shared a trust with each other. I can assure you, that—"

"You are no longer a teacher, Mr. O'Reilly," said Hastings.

"You really needn't point out the obvious, Miss Applespice," said O'Reilly."It's Professor Applespice," said Hastings, "And if I catch you in my office again I will curse you till you're dizzy. Now, because you are ostensibly here to find something to help Minerva, I won't press the matter—"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Professor," said O'Reilly, hands on his hips. "So many big words don't suit you. No matter. I'm done here anyway." He didn't put the book back, but he pushed past her and walked out of the office, leaving Hastings fuming. Mechanically, she walked over to her desk to replace the book. She saw the page it was open to and picked the book up in surprise. Untraceable Curses was written across the top and below was a list of various curses and potions that could be used to harm others. Flipping to the cover she saw that the book was _Magical Creatures and Magical Mayhem_. Grabbing it she marched to the dungeons to show Sirius and Odessa.

"What do you think of this?" Hastings asked them, shoving the book into Odessa's face as soon as she walked in.

"I think it's a very dusty book," Odessa said with a smile. "Why do you ask?"

"Look at the title," Hastings said.

"Okay, it's a dusty book about magical creatures." Odessa looked confused.

"I found O'Reilly looking at it. In my office. Which he broke into," Hastings said.

"Oh," Odessa said. "That would have been good information to have up front."

Sirius grabbed the book and flipped it open, "Did he say what he wanted it for?"

Hastings shrugged, "Some rubbish about dragon scales and Minerva's illness. I think he's lying."

"Why?" Sirius asked.

"Because why would he suspect that someone was cursing Minerva?" Odessa broke in. "There's no reason too. She got the flu."

"Which rarely happens in our world," Sirius points out.

"That doesn't mean never," Odessa argued back. I think O'Reilly's up to something."

"I do too," Hastings agreed. "But I don't know what."

"Maybe he's the one cursing Minerva," Sirius said sarcastically.

"Laugh all you want Sirius Potter, but this is serious. He's been stalking me, my potions have gone missing, Minerva collapses when he's standing right next to her and then he breaks into Hastings' office?"

"Besides that," Hastings broke in, "he could have easily bought this. It's available in most stores. It doesn't even tell you how to do the spells, which makes his looking at it even weirder"

"I bet he didn't know that," Odessa interjected. "That's why he didn't try to take it with him."

"Didn't Professor Vector borrow dragon scales from you?" Sirius asked.

"I know what you're trying to do Sirius and it won't work. Yes, she has, but it's for something totally different."

"She could be lying."

Odessa rolled her eyes, "Isabella actually tell a credible lie, now that's laughable."

"I just think you're jumping to conclusions because you want it to be O'Reilly." Sirius said.

"No, I'm not," Odessa said. "There's been no jumping, just a following of facts."

"You're reading into things."

"Do you like O'Reilly?" Asked Odessa.

"Not particularly," Sirius said.

"Then why are you defending him?"

Before he could answer Hastings interrupted, "Um Odessa, the potion's boiling."

"Crud!" Odessa said, putting out the fire with her wand and moving the cauldron. She leaned over and smelled it. "Oh, thank goodness, it didn't ruin it. I've got to get this up to Minerva. We can finish this discussion later." Odessa poured the potion into a bottle and headed upstairs.

"I still think you're overreacting," Sirius said.

"I don't care what you think," Odessa sang out. "You've been wrong before."

"That's a low blow," Sirius said.

"But well placed," Hastings said with a smile. "Now will you two stop acting like children?"

"We don't act like children," Odessa said, looking insulted.

"Yes, you do," Hastings replied.

"Well, remember what happened with the last guy you wanted to be all adult with. Didn't work out, did it?" Odessa grinned wickedly.

"Wow, you're just asking for trouble tonight, aren't you?" Hastings asked. "First Sirius, now me? You know we'll get you for that."

Odessa just smiled, "If you want things to work out with a certain person you won't do anything."

"Now she's blackmailing us," Sirius said. "I think we'll have to gang up on her." Hastings smiled, "Yes we will."

"But not until I drop this potion off, please," Odessa said.

"Well, we don't want that to be in the way. _Accio Potion_." Before Odessa could grab it, the potion flew neatly into the air and into Hastings hands. Sirius swung Odessa up and over his shoulder.

"So what should we do to her?" He asked Hastings.

"Put me down you big oaf," Odessa said, trying to get either his wand or hers.

"Not going to happen," he said. He grabbed both wands and put them out of her reach. "Now, what's the punishment?"

Hastings grinned, "I think she should be taught the importance of silence."

"Like you know what that is," Odessa said.

"Manners Odessa," Hastings replied. "You are in no position to be rude. _Silencio_!"

Odessa mouthed angrily at her.

"What's that?" Sirius asked. "We can't hear you Odessa," She glared at him. Hastings and Sirius burst into laughter. "It's not often you don't have something to say." Sirius choked out.

"Do you think she's learned her lesson?" Hastings asked.

"No," Sirius said. "But given we're at the hospital wing we should give her her voice back." He waved his wand.

"I can't believe you did that!" Odessa said angrily as Sirius set her down.

"Now Odessa, you have to promise to be nice, and admit that it was funny, and I'll give you your wand back."

"No," Odessa said stubbornly.

"I could put a tickle spell on you," Sirius warned, waving his wand at her.

"Okay, okay" Odessa conceded sulkily. "It was kind of funny, and I probably deserved it. I'll be nice."

"Thank you," Sirius handed her wand back to her and putting her down.

"What are you guys doing?" Gabe asked from the doorway.

"Just walking with Odessa to bring the potion to Minerva," Hastings said, trying to look innocent. "How is she?"

"Ready to get out of the hospital wing." Gabe said with a grin. "Thanks for the potion."

"Want us to wait around for you?" Sirius asked. "Then we could all go have a drink in our common room. It's been one of those days."

"There's no need to wait," Gabe said.

"I'll tell you what. Hastings will stay here with you and Sirius and I will go get the drinks ready," Odessa broke in. "In fact, Hastings was just telling me how she's fascinated by medicine and was hoping that she'd get a chance to hang out with you. If you don't mind." Odessa smiled sweetly and ignored Hastings glare.

"Sure, that'd be great. I love to talk about medicine."

"We'll see you in a few then," Odessa said. As she passed Hastings she whispered in her ear, just loud enough for Gabe to hear, "You're right, he is cute."

"That was cruel," Sirius said as they walked out of the hospital.

"He didn't hear me," Odessa said.

"How do you know?"

"He's one of those people who really focuses on their work and he was busy measuring the right dosage of medicine for Minerva. I would be really surprised if what I said even registered in his brain."

Sirius laughed, "You do have him pegged. But you probably freaked Hastings out. She doesn't know that."

"Then she should learn not to silence me."

"What's my punishment?" Sirius asked with a grin.

"No kisses for a week,"

"Oh really?" Sirius grabbed her and gave her a giant, wet kiss. "I don't think that's going to work."

"It will if you keep kissing like that, that was disgusting," Odessa wiped her mouth. Sirius grinned and pushed open the door the men's common room.

"Come on sour puss, they'll be here in a few minutes and I need your help mixing up some drinks."


	20. Chapter 20

"And, see, this is here is Polymorph Gel," said Gabe. "Eases the transformation process for beginning Animorphmagi and werewolves." As Gabe went through his stores, explaining things to Hastings as he went, Hasting felt more and more uncomfortable. And bored. Suddenly, she was reminded of a certain _other_ Medi-Wizard who always had his mind on his job, but little else. Absently, she looked at her watch, which said it was well after the time she was normally in bed. Did they really have to have drinks with the others tonight? She'd been sick, then had to run for help right after, and had spent the last hour or so with a headache, trying to figure out why that git O'Reilly was in her office. It just wasn't fair—

"I know, it's not the most exciting thing in the world," said Gabe. Hastings looked up and realized he'd been staring at her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, smiling, "I'm just distracted by the craziness from earlier tonight, that's all."

"No, you're not," said Gabe, laughing cheerfully as he flipped the Polymorph Gel, caught it, and placed it on a shelf. "You're bored out of your mind. That's okay… I don't really have an interest in this stuff either… jus a means to an end."

"What do you mean?" asked Hastings.

"Curing people," said Gabe, "Breaking curses—you know, fighting dark magic. That's why _I'm_ here anyway. As the DA teacher, I'm sure you have the same goal, right?"

"Yes," said Hastings. "But mostly because I have lots of energy and almost no book smarts, Teaching DA is fun."

"Come on, you're smart," said Gabe, pouring a cup of the steaming potion for Minerva. "You're genius in Defensive skills and practical knowledge of curses is first rate. You've even had some Muggle defensive training, if I heard right."

"You did hear right," said Hastings. "Question is, who told you?"

"Odessa," said Gabe. "Always going on about you to me. She thinks very highly of you."

"That's nice of you to say," said Hastings. She smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I've had more training than I knew what to do with," she said, "When I didn't show magical skill at the age of three like my siblings, mum and dad enrolled me in fencing, martial arts, gymnastics… all sorts of things. They wanted to know that at least in some way I'd be protected. That's not smarts, though… just a smattering of physical ability."

"But you're still smart, like in school and things. I happen to know that you got no less than five Outstandings on your OWLs, and one… well, one Satisfactory…Not to mention you did even better on your NEWTs" Gabe said quickly.

"That Satisfactory would be potions," said Hastings. "I'm hopeless at it. I can't even make a simple giggle potion. Tried once when we were jinxing some Slytherins as kids. I poisoned a kid—got three hundred points taken, and detention with O'Reilly."

Gabe laughed, and said, "Well, my parents had me in football as a kid," said Gabe. "Both of them became fascinated with muggles during the war. Probably because they spent so much time protecting them. I even grew up in a muggle neighborhood. My mum was what you might call—well, Americans call it—a "Soccer Mom." We had a mini-van, always loaded with soda and snacks for the kids on my football team."

"What's a minivan?" asked Hastings.

"Well, a muggles transport, you know, a type of car… Like a multi-passenger broom. Even had a telly inside to watch movies."

"Wow," said Hastings, "What muggles have to do for entertainment…"

"Yeah, well," said Gabe, "some of it was fun. I always preferred magic though. He walked the potion over to Minerva, who had drifted off. "Minerva," said Gabe, gently patting her on the arm. "Take some of this, you'll feel better."

"I hate medicine," said McGonagall, sleepily waking.

"If you take it, I'll let you go to sleep in your own room," said Gabe in a coaxing manner. Immediately, Minerva sat up, took the cup from him, and swallowed its entire contents. "There, now, was that so bad?"

"Hmmm," said McGonagall, smacking her lips, "Tastes like Butter Rum."

"All right, now Professor," said Gabe, helping her up to her feet. "Get some sleep. Would you like someone to walk with you?"

"I can handle walking on my own, Mr. Lupin," said McGonagall, "You finish up here and… then walk back with Professor Applespice." She looked at Hastings, and winked behind her square glasses, then walked outside.

"Well, should we clean up?" asked Hastings.

"Not much to do," said Gabe, "But rinse this cup out. I'll be right back." He was gone a moment, and when he came back, he switched out the light. "So, anyway, I did well in football, but I hated it."

"You wanted to do something else?" asked Hastings.

"Wanted to play the piano professionally, actually."

"You're kidding."

"Nope. Or be a writer. Silly, I guess."

"That's not silly at all," said Hastings, liking him even more.

"Ah, well, just a little." Gabe said, smiling. "Shall we go upstairs now? Odessa and Sirius might start some rumors if we don't show up soon."

"Rumors?" Hastings asked.

"Yes, rumors. About what two wizards were doing in the hospital wing."

"Oh, yes, of course," Hastings said, blushing.

"Don't want to give them the wrong idea. Come on." Hastings followed him out of the room slowly, embarrassed. Here she was interested in him and he didn't want to start any rumors.

"Well, I'd better get on to our common room. I have to do some research before classes…" Hastings said, trying to get away from Gabe before he suspected something.

"It's Saturday tomorrow, crazy. Stay up and play Snap or Chess with us."

"Oh, yeah," said Hastings. "I… I forgot.

"Everything okay?" asked Gabe.

"Sure it is," said Hastings.

Gabe touched her arm lightly, "You're a good friend, Hastings, thanks for hanging around me while I finished up."

Hastings opened the door, and walked in. "It's nothing," she said, mortified that he only saw her as his _friend_. She walked through to the Men's Common Room with Gabe in tow. Once inside, she sat at the table with Odessa and Sirius, took a bottle of Butter Beer, and gulped it down.

"Hello Hastings," said Odessa.

"Hiya," said Hastings in between drinks.

"Everything okay?" Odessa asked.

"Just fine," Hastings said quickly. Odessa decided not to pursue the matter for now.

"Exploding Snap, then?" she asked.

"Sure," said Gabe. "Funny, when I was in school here, it never occurred to me that our teachers might be playing the same games we did." He pointed toward Professors Vector and Greene, who were engaged in a heated game of Wizard's Chess.

They began playing, but Hastings wasn't paying attention to the game. She just wished she could get out of there, but couldn't come up with a good reason to do so.

"Well, that's enough for me," said Sirius about an hour later. "It's been fun, but chaperoning kids is tiring business. You coming, Lupin?"

"I'd like to keep playing, if the girls don't mind." Hastings smothered a groan.

Odessa stood up. "I'm actually rather tired myself, although its been fun. Coming Hastings?"

Thankful for the excuse to get away Hastings jumped up, "Actually yes. Sorry Gabe, but it's getting late and I'm not much of a night person.

"Well, you guys sure are boring," Gabe said with a smile.

"I don't want to hear it," Sirius said, "You had a lovely little nap when you fell into that dream ivy."

Gabe laughed, "I suppose I did. But that doesn't excuse you guys from acting like old farts."

"Please forgive us, Gabe, and our fartiness," Odessa said, laughing. Hastings rolled her eyes, she just wanting to leave.

"Just this once," Gabe said, winking. "You guys have good night."

Sirius grabbed Odessa's hand and kissed it, "Until tomorrow."

Odessa knocked on the door to Hastings' room. There was no answer. "Haste, everything okay?" She pushed the door open.

It was dark in the room, no candle burned, and Hastings was in bed with the covers pulled over her head. There was no sound, but for her breathing. "I _know_ you're not asleep yet," said Odessa. "You've never been able to fool me. And I'm going to stay here and talk to you till you tell me what's going on."

"I'm fine," said Hastings.

"Yeah, as if I'm gonna believe that," said Odessa. "What happened?"

"Nothing," said Hastings.

Odessa pointed her wand at Hastings's blankets. "_Wingardiam Leviosa_!" The blankets lifted off her, even though she grasped at them, and floated to the ceiling, and dropped to the floor.

"Cut it out, Ode," said Hastings, rising from her bed. She stepped on a book and curse, hopping on one foot. "_Lumos firai_!" her wand lit up with fire at the end, and she lit an oil lamp on her night stand.

"You're not even dressed for bed," said Odessa, noting Hastings still wore her teaching robes and shoes.

"So what?" said Hastings. "I was tired. Um… Butter Beer, you know? Goes straight to my head."

"Now I _know_ you're lying," said Odessa. "Even if it had been fire whiskey, you'd have had us all under the table in one drink. For the last time, Hastings, what's the matter?"

Hastings grabbed her blankets from the floor, jumped on her bed, and pulled them up to her neck. "He's not ever going to like me that way," she said.

"Gabe?"

"No, Professor O'Reilly," said Hastings sarcastically. "I've been harboring a secret passion for him for ages, you see, and—"

"All right, all right, come on," said Odessa, exasperated. "What happened to make you think he doesn't like you?"

"He didn't want to stay too long alone in the hospital wing – said he didn't want rumors to start. And then he said I was a good friend."

"I think he likes you," said Odessa. "As more than a friend. He was being a gentleman."

Hastings snorted, "Yeah, right. A gentleman. I don't know why I even try with men. I should just resign myself to being single. It certainly is easier." She turned over in her bed and pulled the covers up again.

"You're wrong, Hastings," said Odessa. "There's definitely something there."

Hastings sat up again, "Sod off, Ode. You and Sirius just need to leave well enough alone."

Odessa looked surprised and hurt, "I—I'm sorry, Hastings. I wasn't trying to hurt you…" She turned to go.

"No," said Hastings, "I'm sorry, Ode. That was unfair of me. I know you were just trying to help."

"I was," said Odessa.

"And I appreciate it. I just don't think anything is working."

"You never know what tomorrow will bring," said Odessa. "Good night, Hastings. Sleep well."

"You too," said Hastings, glumly.


	21. Chapter 21

Odessa left Hastings's room and went to bed. After an hour of tossing and turning she walked back to the men's common room to see if anyone was still there. Gabe had already gone to bed as well as Professors Vector and Greene. Odessa sat down before the fire and watched the flames lick the wood. She heard a door open and close. Sirius came through, holding a book. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Oh, hi," said Sirius. "Can't sleep. What about you?"

"Couldn't sleep either," said Odessa.

"How'd things go with Hastings?"

"I think she's getting sick of our interfering in her love life," said Hastings.

"Oh well. We almost wrecked our own—no need to try with her."

Odessa smiled, "Do you want to take a walk?"

"I'd like that," said Sirius. Holding hands, they headed to the Astronomy Tower.

"Remember," said Sirius, "When we were about sixteen, walking up here with my dad's old cloak over us?"

"Yeah," said Odessa. "Remember the time we were kissing under it and Professor O'Reilly's wand snagged it off us?"

Sirius laughed. "Oh, yeah. We sure had a lot to explain that night."

"Much good it did us, we both still ended up with detention."

"You know," Sirius said, "I think I spent half my time here in detention."

Odessa smirked, "Yeah, you always got caught."

"Like you didn't," Sirius said.

"Not nearly as much. Falcon always wanted to tell the truth though. I had to convince him to lie…" Odessa trailed off as she remembered what Hastings had told her about the letter.

"Yeah, he was always the honest one." Sirius agreed. "I had to convince him to lie a few times too. I think I silenced him once or twice when the teacher wasn't looking He promised to get me back one day, I'm still waiting."

"With his new job you probably won't see much of him," Odessa said.

"I never saw him much before," Sirius reminded her. "But he's an excellent correspondent."

"Of that I have no doubt," Odessa said with a wry smile. "You know, I wonder if we're as easy to fool as our professors were."

"I don't think they were fooled all that often," Sirius said. "They just knew when they didn't have the evidence to back up their accusations. At least that's been my experience."

"Yeah, I suppose so," Odessa said, rubbing her arms. "It's getting cold, let's go in."

"I could warm you up," Sirius said with a mischievous grin.

Odessa smiled in return and hooked her arm through is, "You do warm me up, Sirius. So very much."

Sirius bent over to kiss her head but Odessa jerked up and banged her head on his chin.

"Ouch!" Sirius said. "What'd you do that for."

"Shh," Odessa said, rubbing her own head. "Look." Odessa pointed towards the grounds. Peering down, Sirius could just make out O'Reilly and Professor Greene in a heated argument.

"What do you suppose that's all about?" Odessa asked. "I thought Professor Greene went to bed."

Probably nothing." Sirius said.

"It has to be something," Odessa insisted.

"No, it doesn't," Sirius said. "You just want it to be something."

"Couldn't you be supportive, just once?" Odessa asked angrily.

"Okay, it's probably something dark and horrible," Sirius said. "Unfortunately, unless you happen to have extendable ears on you, we'll never know."

Odessa giggled, "You're horrible. And no, I don't carry extendable ears with me." She glanced over the tower wall again, but both professors were gone. "Oh well, let's go in."

Sirius took her arm and escorted her back to the ladies common room. "Have a good night," he said softly.

"You too," Odessa gave him a quick kiss and went to her room.

"Class. Class! Everyone!" Odessa pointed her wand in the air and let out a loud bang. The students looked at her, trying to smother their laughter. "If you don't come up here and take the antidote the next potion I'm going to have you try is one for bad luck. I've had it before, trust me when I say that you don't. Now come on." The giggling fourth years made their way to Odessa's desk. She tried to keep a straight face as she administered the antidote to the giggling potion they had just taken.

"Thanks Professor," Rebecca Kingsley said as she dropped her books in a fit of giggles. "I haven't felt this good in awhile."

"You're welcome Miss Kingsley," Odessa said, helping her pick up her books before she gave her the antidote. "Okay – your homework is an essay on the properties of the antidote to the giggling potion and how else it can be used. I want at least two feet of parchment. Now go – get to lunch a little early." Her fourth years quickly packed up their books and left. Odessa hummed and started to ready her classroom for her NEWT class after lunch.

"Oh good, you're still here." Odessa looked up to see Professor McGonagall slowly walk in.

"Minerva! How are you feeling?"

"I'm still not feeling very well to be perfectly honest," Professor McGonagall said. "In all my years I cannot remember a time when I was this sick."

"Can I give you anything?"

"That's why I'm here. Gabe's going to escort me to St. Mungo's. I need you to whip me up something for motion sickness. We're going to take the carriages to Hogsmeade."

"Lucky for you, I have some in stock." Odessa perused her shelves. "Here you go. Take this about five minutes before you leave and you'll be fine."

"Thanks Odessa." Minerva put the potion in her robes. "While I'm gone Jade will be acting as headmistress. She'll announce it tonight at dinner. She'll also be visiting me every other day to keep me updated. Offered to do it through letters, but I prefer face-to-face visits. Isabella will be in charge when Jade is gone. But I doubt you'll notice much change in your day-to-day operations."

"It won't be the same without you here," Odessa said. "I hope you feel better soon. Oh, and let me know if you need anything to make those potions at St. Mungo's taste better, they usually don't worry about things like that."

Professor McGonagall smiled, "Thanks dear. I'll see you later."

"Take care Minerva."

"He went where?" asked Hastings, helping herself to another large portion of Shepherd's Pie.

"Take Minerva to St. Mungo's," said Odessa between bites. "You heard Jade's announcement, didn't you?"

"Yes," said Hastings, "I just… didn't know that Gabe had gone too. When's he coming back?"

"Tonight sometime," said Sirius, stabbing a piece of roast beef with his fork. "Worried about him, eh?"

"Not at all," said Hastings, her mouth full. "Just inquiring after a friend. There's nothing weird about that."

"Nothing weird, huh?" asked Odessa. "You're reaching for a third piece of pie, and I lost count of how many goblets of pumpkin juice you've had. You always overeat when you're nervous about something."

"Just concerned that he'll have the misfortune to run into that git, Puddingwaste."

"Why are you so against him these days?" asked Sirius. "What did you break up over, anyway?"

Hastings looked at Odessa a moment, then swallowed a large bite she'd had in her mouth. "Just that we don't agree on certain things. He believes he's God's gift to the universe, and I disagree."

"Whatever," said Sirius. "Oi. Mail's here. I think I preferred when they did it in the morning." A plethora of owls swooped in the window and alighted at various tables, many dropping parcels from home to the students. One in particular was headed toward Hastings.

"Look," she said, "One for me!" She caught the letter as the owl flew above her, and studied the return address. "Oh, bloody hell."

"What is it?" asked Sirius and Odessa at the same time.

"The Office of the Head Medi-Wizard, Intern Puddinghaste, St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies." Hastings opened it quickly, almost ripping the parchment inside. "What could he have to say to…" Her eyes moved back and forth over the note, taking in his message. Letting it fall from her fingers onto the remnants of her Shepherd's pie, she said, "Well, that's that, then." She stood up from the table and walked away, heading for the Hogwarts grounds, having lost her appetite.

Odessa watched her leave the great hall and then grabbed the parchment from the table to read it:

Miss Applespice,

I believe It is my duty to inform you that I will be at Hogwarts several times a month to help Dr. Lupin in the hospital wing. This has been arranged through Professor Greene. We are still not sure what is causing Minerva's illness. With cold season coming up, Jade wanted to make sure that there would be extra help available. I trust that we can behave as colleagues and that you would not be so indiscreet as to mention past disagreements. 'Til then,

Falcon Puddinghaste

"Why would Falcon be worried about Hastings mentioning past arguments?" Sirius asked, reading over her shoulder.

Odessa shrugged, "Probably his pride."

"Maybe," Sirius said. "I wouldn't think that this would upset Hastings so much though."

"Yeah, I'm a bit surprised too," Odessa said. "Shepherd's Pie is her favorite."

"Professor!" Sirius and Odessa looked up to see a young third year running towards them.

"Yes, Mr. Murphy?" Sirius asked.

"I…um, well you see, I was practicing that spell you taught us today in class…"

"Go on," Sirius encouraged.

"And…well…er…I think my shoe ate Lillian's kitten." He looked down, embarrassed.

Sirius refused to look at Odessa, knowing that he would laugh if he did.

"And why do you think it ate Lillian's kitten?" Sirius asked.

"Because I saw him do it. And I don't want Lillian to know. She'd be awful mad at me." He held up a bag that was wiggling and making odd noises. "I brought the shoe."

Sirius started coughing, trying to hide his laughter, "Right then, Patrick. "Let's go to my office where the shoe can't escape and see what we can do about rescuing that cat."

"Thank you so much Professor Potter," Patrick said gratefully.

"I do what I can," he said, placing his hand on Patrick's back and guiding him towards the door. Sirius glanced back at Odessa and mouthed, "later." Odessa nodded, waiting until he was out of the room before she burst into laughter.


	22. Chapter 22

"Feeling any better?" Odessa asked Hastings later that night.

"A little. It was more of a shock than anything. And then all I could think of was him and Gabe becoming friends." Hastings paused, "Have you told Sirius about the letter?"

"Not yet. The timing hasn't been right."

"You really need to tell him Ode," Hastings said. "He has a right to know that his best mate is a bastard."

"The truth'll come out in the end, it always does." Odessa said. "But back to Falcon coming here. It won't be that bad you know. He'll only be in several times a month. And you can avoid him then."

Hastings snorted, "With my luck I'll fall off the tower again and get to be attended by the young doctor."

Odessa smiled, "I'll make sure it's Gabe who attends to you."

"Hey! No more match making. You promised."

"No, I didn't." Odessa said. "I'm just going to be more discreet. So discreet in fact, you won't even notice."

"You don't know the meaning of discreet," Hastings said.

"I do too!" Odessa replied. "I'm so discreet that you can't even figure out what I'm thinking most of the time."

"Uh huh," Hastings said, unconvinced. "I bet you just stopped thinking."

Odessa laughed, "Well, that too. So what do you think of Minerva's illness?"

Hastings shrugged, "I don't know. I'm completely mystified. O'Reilly thinks she's being cursed."

"Or cursing her," Odessa chimed in.

"Or cursing her," Hastings agreed. "Which is more probable if her illness isn't natural. He's been hanging around here all year. Why didn't he do it when he was a professor?"

"Don't know. Didn't want to draw attention to himself?" Odessa said.

"Seems like he's drawing more attention to himself now," Hastings said.

"Only to us. The other professors seem to think everything's normal."

"I suppose we'll have to see who gets sick next. But what could he be planning?"

"I have no idea Haste. But it's past midnight and I have my first years tomorrow. They're fun, but I think they'll follow in your footsteps when it comes to potions."

Hastings laughed, "At least they're not hiding in the wardrobe in my class."

"Touché. Night Haste."

"Night." Odessa waved and went to her room. As she lit her first lamp she noticed a figure sitting on her bed.

"Pro-professor O'Reilly!" She stammered, surprised.

Professor O'Reilly stood up quickly and smoothed his suit and robes. "Good evening, Miss Grace," he said, simpering at her.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?"

"Language, Miss Grace," said O'Reilly. "I came to inform you that I visited Minerva today, and she seems to be taking a turn for the worse."

"You… you could have told me that in the teachers' lounge. Or sent an owl. _What _are you doing here?" Odessa's wand was trained on O'Reilly, and she was deciding which unforgivable curse she'd rather do on him if he gave her a reason.

"Miss Grace, I suppose you ought to know at some point…" He came toward her slowly.

"Stay where you are," said Odessa, her wand raising a little. "Talk to me, but stand still. I don't trust you."

"Isn't that ironic?" asked O'Reilly. "You don't trust me, and the very thing I am here to do is tell you that you are the only one here at Hogwarts whom I _do_ trust."

"What do you mean?"

"There is someone here who is trying to murder Professor McGonagall," said O'Reilly simply.

Odessa snorted, "Yeah, like you."

"So, you still think that Slytherins are all bad, do you?" asked O'Reilly.

"All evil wizards were in Slytherin," said Odessa, "It's a known fact."

O'Reilly became angry. "And so I suppose you believe it follows that all Slytherins are Evil wizards!"

"If the shoe fits."

"Miss Grace, there is someone here who is out to destroy Professor McGonagall. You may not believe it, but it is not me. It is one of the teachers, I am convinced of it."

"And I'm the only one you trust?" asked Odessa. "So you suspect, who, Sirius? Hastings? Gabe?"

"No," said O'Reilly. "I suspect none of the younger teachers. First of all, whomever is cursing Professor McGonagall has an extremely advanced ability, and frankly, none of your little friends has close to the same caliber of—"

"Don't you _dare_ insult my friends," said Odessa.

"Beyond that," said O'Reilly, "I can tell you exactly who I suspect."

"Oh yeah?" asked Odessa, "And who's that?"

"Professor Jade Greene."

Odessa laughed out loud. "You have got to be kidding me!"

"You asked, I answered," said Professor O'Reilly. "I just wanted to tell you." He began to walk toward the door.

"Once again," said Odessa, "You could've told me in another way. You showing up in my private chamber is not appropriate."

O'Reilly walked up to her, paused a moment, and breathed in deeply. "So fearful," he said, "So mistrusting." His hand went to her cheek, and she jerked her head away. "Like a hunted animal," he said softly, nauseatingly. He grasped a lock of her hair, brought it to his nose, and breathed it in with closed eyes. Odessa was paralyzed with fear. He let her hair drop, and continued toward the door. "Keep me in your confidence, Miss Grace," he said, "For you would not like me as an enemy."


	23. Chapter 23

"That psycho did what!" asked Sirius, forcing himself to stay in the room and not run after that git and curse him.

"Calm down," said Odessa, "The point is, he made an accusation. A stupid one, at that. It just proves that he's trying whatever means necessary to cover himself. I mean, Professor Greene? Really…"

Sirius started pacing around his room. She'd gone to see him first thing when Professor O'Reilly left. "At least you have no more delusions of grandeur about how he really feels about you," said Sirius, trying to be calm, but not succeeding. "That prat! That bleeding dung hill! That festering piece of sh—"

"Shush, Sirius, this doesn't help," said Odessa. "We always knew he was a little off, now we know it's directed at me."

"That's the whole problem," said Sirius. "We know that he's the one cursing Minerva—he has to be. Now that he's as good as marked you as his territory—"

"Ew, gross mental picture," said Odessa.

"Now that he's done that, he'll be after you next. You can't trust him. He's likely to poison you as not. He's already coming into your room. That bastard! I'm gonna kill him! I'm gonna guard your door every night until I get the chance to get him!"

"Calm down," said Odessa. "Look, maybe we should talk to Professor Greene, or Minerva, or someone. Maybe even…"

There was a loud crash outside, in the men's common room. Odessa and Sirius jumped up and ran outside. In the middle of the floor, Gabe was getting up off the floor, clutching his knee and cursing quietly. "Well, so much for my surprise return," said Gabe.

"What happened?" asked Odessa as she and Sirius walked down the stairs.

"Not as graceful as I would like," said Gabe. "I tripped over something, but come to think about it, I can't tell what I tripped over. "You haven't been hiding dead bodies with your invisibility cloak, have you, Sirius?"

"No, I stopped doing that my sixth year," said Sirius.

"Hmmm, I wonder what it was then," Gabe started to feel around the floor. "I can't find anything," he shrugged and stood up. "I suppose it was just my own clumsiness," he said, but he didn't look convinced.

"Welcome back," Odessa said with a grin.

"Thanks. It feels good to be back." Gabe paused for a moment, "I have to confess that I overheard part of your conversation."

"And…" Sirius said.

"And I think someone is cursing Minerva as well. I've been studying her case for a month now and nothing makes sense. It's the only explanation."

"Who do you think's doing it?" Odessa asked.

"Not Professor Greene, that's for sure. She's a great herbologist, but I've seen her potion skills, not as advanced as would be needed to pull this off."

"How do you know about her potion skills?" Odessa asked, getting suspicious.

"She wanted some help with making a few common potions made from her more advanced plants. Said she was going to ask you but she knew you and Sirius had just gotten back together and she didn't want to disturb you. Trust me, she doesn't have the skill for it. I think it's O'Reilly too. I think he's the only one capable."

Sirius nodded, "Then we need to keep an eye on him. Especially when he's around Odessa."

"We could ask Jade to keep him from coming." Odessa said hopefully.

"I don't think that'll work," Sirius said. "I've known Jade for awhile now and she won't usurp Minerva's authority like that, even though she's acting headmistress. You'd better have a good reason, and all we have for now is conjecture."

"I suppose miracles can't happen everyday," Odessa said sadly. "But we do need to know who's cursing Minerva."

"Cursing Minerva?" A voice said from the door. The three looked over to see Falcon walk in. "Trust me, no one is cursing her. Having an attack of that overactive imagination of yours Odessa?" Falcon smiled, "I've studied her case myself, she should be well soon enough. And let's not forget that she's quite old."

"Are you okay Falcon?" Sirius asked, looking closely at him.

"Yes, I'm fine. I'm just here for tonight and tomorrow to work schedules and such out with Gabe. In fact, I came here to find him."

"What are you doing here?" Hastings walked in the room, glaring at Falcon.

"Didn't you receive my note?" He asked.

"Oh yeah, that." Hastings said. "How long are you here for?"

"Just tonight and tomorrow, as I was telling the others. But I'm in a hurry. Let's go Gabe." With a confused glance at the others, Gabe followed Falcon out the door.

"He sure was acting odd," Sirius said.

"I agree, he didn't seem himself," Odessa said.

"Probably just uncomfortable being here. Afraid that I'll say something about him writing that letter." Hastings clamped her hand over her mouth.

"What letter?" Sirius asked, looking at the guilty expressions on Odessa and Hastings faces. "Something tells me that you're not talking about the one he sent you."

"Why would you think that?" Odessa asked, her voice squeaking.

"Because Falcon already brought that one up." Sirius said. "Come on girls, fess up."

Odessa thought quickly but no lie would come to her. "Um…well, you see…" She looked at Hastings for help.

"Um…I um…when Falcon broke up with me we had an argument and he just let something slip that he should have kept to himself."

"And that would be?" Sirius asked.

"That he wrote the letter," Odessa said.

"I've gathered that much," Sirius said sarcastically.

"The one that you found on my desk. That said I was leaving you."

Sirius just stared at her for a moment, "You're lying."

Odessa held her hands up, "No, I'm not. I would never make something like this up. Please believe me."

"She's telling the truth," Hastings chimed in. "When we broke up he was mad at me and it just slipped out. That's what he was referring to when he wrote me, about being discreet. Um…I should probably go now." Hastings backed out of the room, mouthing "I'm sorry" to Odessa.

"Did he really write the letter?" Sirius asked Odessa, trying to remain calm.

"That's what he told Hastings, I doubt he'd lie about it."

"Did he say why?" Sirius asked, gripping the candlestick next to him so tightly that it snapped in two.

"He wanted to go out with me," Odessa said, cringing at how stupid that sounded.

"I knew he liked you, but he always said how happy he was for me…that bastard. I should kill the lying son-of-a-"

"No, you shouldn't," Odessa interrupted.

"Oh, I really think I should. Tonight. And then I'll kill O'Reilly and this world will have two less scumbags to worry about."

"It all worked out in the end," Odessa said, grabbing his arm, hoping to keep him in the common room.

"You're not even upset over this?" Sirius asked, incredulous.

"I was. I still am. But I've known for months now."

"And when were you planning on telling me?"

"When the time was right. I don't know Sirius, I didn't want to ruin the friendship between you guys. You've been best mates for years."

"You should have told me," Sirius said.

"I didn't know if you'd believe me," Odessa replied.

"Of course I'd believe you. Why wouldn't I…oh." Sirius sat on the couch. "I don't know what to think, what to do. I just want to go kill that man."

Odessa sat next to him, "I know you do. And personally, I wouldn't mind. Although the ministry might have a problem with it."

Sirius snorted, "Not if they didn't know about it."

"Sirius!"

"Don't worry, I won't condemn you to a life of sorrow by getting locked up in Azkaban."

"You certainly think a lot of yourself," Odessa said with a smile.

"And rightfully so. I'm going out with you – that says a lot."

"True. You do have exceptionally good taste."

"Just promise to keep him away from me," Sirius said. "I don't think I could handle looking at him.

Odessa grabbed his hand and laid her head on his shoulder, "I promise. I'll keep you away from O'Reilly too."

"No, I need to be around him. I need to figure out how he's poisoning Minerva."

"We'll have to come up with a plan in the morning," Odessa said, yawning. Sirius nodded. They sat there quietly watching the fire until they both fell asleep, Sirius sitting up and Odessa leaning against him with her head on his shoulder.

It was four in the morning when they woke up, a little stiff, the fire's embers dying. "I'm so sleepy," said Odessa.

"Here, I'll walk you to bed," said Sirius. He walked her to her room, waited as she got into bed, and kissed her cheek. "Sleep good for another… two hours."

Odessa groaned. "First years tomorrow," she said, "While you're making a list of people to kill, can you murder me so I don't have to teach tomorrow?"

"For you, I'd do anything… but I'm going to pull a selfish card here and say no," said Sirius with a smile. "Who would I date if you were dead?"

"Oh, yeah," said Odessa, yawning tiredly. "Wasn't thinking. Sorry about that."

"Well, don't let it happen again," said Sirius, then left her to sleep. She was already breathing deeply when he closed the door behind him.

He walked out into the common room, heading toward the men's common room and his chamber. He saw Hastings sitting on the couch, tying her trainers. "Don't you sleep, Hastings?" he asked.

"Of course I do," said Hastings. "At nine. I never sleep past four or five."

"You're crazy," said Sirius. "Where are you going?"

"For a walk around the Black Lake," said Hastings.

"Actually, crazy isn't the word for it. You're bonkers."

Hastings smiled, then said, "Fall asleep with Odessa?"

Sirius smiled and nodded. "Yeah… it was nice."

"Hmmm," said Hastings, standing up and zipping up her hoodie. "I feel like I should be asking you what your intentions are with my best friend."

"Totally dishonorable, I assure you," said Sirius.

"Good," said Hastings. "Just making sure." They walked out of the common room together and parted at the stairs to the men's dormitories.

"Have a good walk," said Sirius, yawning.

"Have a good sleep," said Hastings.

Hastings walked out of the tower and toward the great hall, looking forward to her walk. She came to the hospital wing corridor, and someone came walking around the corner, barreling into her. "Ouch," she said, falling on her rear.

Gabe stood up and extended a hand. "Sorry about that," he said.

"You just now quitting for the evening?" asked Hastings as she stood up.

"Yeah," said Gabe. "That Dr. Puddinghaste is a real stickler for detail. Told me all the potions were labeled wrong. We had to reorganize everything before he was satisfied. But he knows his stuff, that's for sure."

"Yeah," said Hastings. "He sure does."

"Where are you off to so early in the morning?"

"Walk outside," said Hastings. "I'm usually up this early."

"Wow," said Gabe.

"You… don't want to come, do you?"

Gabe checked his watch, stretched, and said, "Well, I guess at this point, it would be easier to stay up than go to bed. Sure, I'll come—as long as it's not too cold out."

"It's only November," said Hastings as they walked out the door to the grounds. "It's never bad in November. Now, my January morning walks have been known to be a little nippy, but…"

"Can I tell you something?" asked Gabe as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Sure," said Hastings.

"You're the oddest girl I've ever met."

"Why, thanks for the compliment," said Hastings with a bright smile. They headed towards the lake.

They were halfway around when Gabe said, "So… you went out with Dr. Puddinghaste, didn't you?"

"Why do you ask?" asked Hastings, surprised at the change of conversation from Quidditch injuries to relationships.

"Oh, just something he mentioned," said Gabe. "He talked about you all the time when I would swing by St. Mungo's for supplies. He seemed smitten with you. Then… he started to change somehow."

"Falcon wasn't smitten with me," said Hastings. "He wanted Odessa. _Everyone_ does." She bit her lip.

"Well, he doesn't now, even if he used to," said Gabe. "Can't blame him, really… hey, hang on. What do you mean _'Everyone does'_?"

"Nothing," said Hastings. "Just a joke. When we were kids… Anyone I introduced Odessa to automatically had a crush on her… Sometimes, I wonder if that's still the case—especially people like Falcon—uh, Dr. Puddinghaste."

"That's funny," said Gabe.

"Not if you were me," said Hastings. "She got the dates… I got to be the little sister."

"Well, I guess not," said Gabe, "But it is funny that you and Dr. Puddinghaste were going out."

"Why?" asked Hastings, suddenly feeling defensive.

"I don't mean any offense to you," said Gabe. "On the contrary, actually. You're fun-loving, and he's so… so…"

"Anal?" asked Hastings.

Gabe laughed out loud. "I guess," he said. "Just that he's serious. You're so different from him. What did you see in him?"

"Opposites attract," said Hastings. "For a little while, at least… Then I found out what a boring _prat_ he was."

"Bad breakup?' Gabe asked.

"You could say that," Hastings replied. "I'm surprised he still liked me when he was at St. Mungo's."

"He did. He kept going on and on about how you thought he was boring and he thought you were perfect. When I asked him why he didn't try to win you back he said he'd slammed the door shut on that possibility by accident."

Hastings grinned, "That he did. More than you could ever imagine."

"Guys are stupid like that sometimes," Gabe said. "But, like I said, he started to change."

"Finally got over me," Hastings asked, trying not to feel hurt.

"No, not that. I mean…" Gabe paused awkwardly. "He stopped bemoaning the fact that you guys weren't together. But he also…I don't know. It's like the internship suddenly went to his head. He wouldn't talk to people like he used too, seemed very uppity. Even tonight. I thought we'd be friends again since he was away from the hospital but all he kept doing – besides pointing out everything I'd done wrong – is talk about Odessa's crazy ideas about people cursing other people and how stupid I was for even listening to her."

"You know Odessa's theory?" Hastings was surprised.

"I overheard her and Sirius discussing it, and I agree with them. Of course, Falcon said he didn't notice anything strange about Minerva's illness. Maybe I was reading into things. I don't know what to think anymore."

"Well, you should know that Odessa has a pretty wild imagination," Hastings said. "But a lot of times she's right on track, at least partly anyway."

"So what are you saying?" Gabe asked.

"That Odessa's probably onto something, even if it's not as sensational as she might think. It just might be some student with a grudge on Minerva."

"Hey, Hastings!" Odessa came running towards her and Gabe.

"I thought you were in bed," Hastings called back.

"I was, but it's already 6:30 – didn't you notice?"

"Guess not," Hastings said.

"Anyway," Odessa said, stopping next to her and Gabe, slightly out of breath, "your office has been broken into."

"What?"

"I went in there to find you for breakfast and the door was swung open and your stuff is all over the floor. I couldn't tell if anything was missing."

"Who would do that?" Hastings asked, jogging back to the castle with Gabe and Odessa following.

"One guess," Odessa said.


	24. Chapter 24

The door to Hastings's office was thrown open wide, and books and papers were scattered everywhere. The drawers of her desk were pulled out and emptied, books were thrown off the shelves, and pages were torn from them. A pensieve that usually stood in the corner was overturned, and the thoughts from inside fluttered all over the floor like live spaghetti noodles. Her Foe Glass had been shattered, and a collection of ancient Sneakoscopes spun uncontrollably on the ground, thrown off their balance. "Oh my… oh my…" Hastings looked at the mess around her, at her ruined things, her hands on her knees, and breathing deeply. She ran to her desk and shuffled through papers and things, searching to see what was missing.

Wow," said Odessa.

"Um… yeah," said Sirius. Trying to look at the lighter of things he said, "Looks cleaner and more organized than usual, Haste." Odessa glared at Sirius while trying to stifle a laugh. Gabe walked over to Hastings.

"What are you looking for, Hastings?" asked Gabe.

"My box…" said Hastings. "My… pencil box."

"What was in it?" asked Sirius.

"Her Chocolate Frogs Card Collection," said Odessa. "Hastings, you can get more Chocolate Frogs. I'll even buy you some…"

"It's not that!" Hastings shouted. She continued to search.

"What is it, then," asked Gabe, calmly sifting through papers.

"My stories and letters from when I was a kid," Hastings said. "Miriam and I used to write stories together, and we'd write letters back and forth for fun. I kept it all in my pencil box. I don't know why someone would steal them – they're meaningless to anyone else."

"We'll help you find them," Odessa said. The four of them scoured the room but nothing could be found.

Hastings sat down on the floor, trying to blink away tears, "It's okay." She said. "It was stupid of me to keep them all these years anyway. They're just letters."

"And they're important," Odessa said. "We'll tell Jade that your room was broken into so that some steps can be made to protect it. And we'll let her know about the pencil box as well."

"Good idea," Gabe said. "Sirius and I'll go let her know. Why don't you girls take an inventory of what's missing." He put his hand on Hastings shoulder, "We'll get that pencil box back for you, I promise."

"Come on Hastings, let's start cleaning up," Odessa said. "Perhaps we'll find the box once everything is back where it belongs." Hastings brightened at the idea and quickly stood up. Pulling out their wands they quickly got the room back into shape.

"There's no box," Hastings said, downhearted.

"We'll find it. I'll put that down first on the list of missing items. What else is gone?"

"Several sneakoscopes, some books…" Hastings started listing things while Odessa wrote them down.

"Hastings, are you okay?" Professor Greene walked into Hastings office and looked around. "Is anything missing?"

"We were just finishing the list," Hastings said. "And yes, I'm fine."

"The boys told me about your pencil box, I'll do everything I can to help you find that."

"Thank you."

"Any idea who might have done this?"

"None," Hastings said.

"Any student upset with you over a grade perhaps?"

Hastings shook her head, "Not that I'm aware of."

"You know," Odessa broke in. "We found O'Reilly in here awhile ago looking through Hastings' books. He never really said why, something about potion properties. Anyway, he left and hasn't been back so we didn't think too much of it."

"I'll talk to him about it. Thanks Odessa." Professor Greene asked a few more questions before leaving.

"Why'd you tell her about O'Reilly?" Hastings asked.

"Because it could be him. I didn't tell her why he was here, but at least now she'll be keeping an eye on him too. Crud, look at the time, I'm late for class. We'll talk later, okay?" Odessa ran out of the room and into her classroom. The first years had already arrived and we're sitting at their desks, talking amongst themselves.

"Good morning class, sorry I'm late. Today we're going to make a simple sleeping draught. I've put the directions on the board. Raise your hand when you're done so I can check it. And for homework I want three feet of parchment on the uses of the draught along with what the active ingredient is and why the other ingredients are necessary." The class began to work and Odessa walked up and down the aisle giving advice here and there, commenting if something was wrong, but her mind was preoccupied. Why would someone break into Hastings office? And why would they steal the pencil box? There wasn't anything in there of any worth to anyone but Hastings. And if it was O'Reilly, why hadn't she seen him on the grounds? Why would someone curse Minerva? And why didn't people seem to realize it? The questions kept running through her head the entire day, but she couldn't come up with any satisfactory answers.

"I love Christmastime," Hastings said as she helped Odessa, Gabe and Sirius hang up the decorations.

"Me too," Odessa said. "It's too bad that Minerva's not better yet. Any thoughts on that Gabe?"

"Nothing that we haven't already been through a thousand times. We know that O'Reilly visits her in the hospital. We know that she hasn't gotten better. And we know that whatever's causing the illness isn't detectable."

"Odessa!" Professor Vector walked into the great hall. "I think I almost have the potion worked out for my telescope. Do you have anymore unicorn hair? I'll order some more for you to make up for all I've borrowed."

"It's not a problem Isabella. I have one jar left on my shelves. Please feel free to take what you need, I have some on order that should arrive in the next few days."

"You're a doll, thanks Odessa."

"Maybe it's Isabella," Sirius said as she left. "We've never really thought about her before."

"There's nothing evil that unicorn hair can be used for," Odessa reminded him.

"Maybe that's the ruse," Sirius said. "She's borrowed a lot from you."

"All for her telescope. It's pretty amazing what she's done with it."

"Why hasn't she asked you to come up with the potion?" Gabe asked, hanging more tinsel on the tree.

"I don't have the time." Odessa said. "Besides, it's her project, I don't want to take it away from her. But I have given suggestions and she's kept me up to date on her progress. The see-through affect lasts almost two hours now – she's trying to make it permanent."

"Couldn't some students steal the telescope and use it for less-than-savory purposes?" Sirius asked.

"I know what you're thinking," Odessa said. "That the boys could use it to spy on the girls."

Sirius shrugged, "It's what I would have done with it."

"Pervert," Hastings said.

"Just being honest."

Odessa smiled, "Isabella's also thought of that prospect and has come up with a solution that she is currently working on as well."

"Making all the boys eunuchs?" Gabe asked with a straight face. The others burst out laughing.

"Not quite, although that isn't a bad idea," Odessa said. "The goal is to make anything up close exceptionally blurry. And since the telescope can only see through one wall at a time it should work just fine. Once Isabella figures out how to do that anyway. But she's hoping to have it all finished soon so her students can stop freezing on the tower during class."

"Ah, kids these days, they have it so easy," Sirius said.

"Like you had it especially difficult, rich boy." Hastings said with a smile. "I remember you used to always have the best toys, brooms, clothes, everything."  
Sirius grinned, "One benefit to being the son of Harry Potter. The Dursley's treated him so horribly that he wanted to make sure that my life was more pleasant. But I wouldn't say I was spoiled."

"Oh no, not at all," Hastings said sarcastically.

"Maybe a little." Sirius said. "But I've more than paid for it by being his son. Too bad there isn't a dark lord for me to defeat, then I could be famous on my own."

"Wouldn't that be wonderful?" Odessa said. "A dark lord of your very own. I bet you could pay someone to pretend to be a dark lord and then beat him up so you could write a book about it."

"Hey, my dad never wrote any books," Sirius protested.

"True. Let me rephrase that, then people could write books about you." Odessa said with a smile. "The great Sirius Potter defeated the up-and-coming dark lord, Henry the Horrible, with a solid punch to the nose."

"Shut up, you goose." Sirius said.

"Hey, I'll write the book," Gabe piped up. "I could use the money."

"And I'll write the forward," Hastings said.

"And I'll live off the royalties," Odessa said. "Let's go hire someone to be a dark lord."

"Who should it be?" Hastings mused. "I know, Hagrid Jr.!"

"You forget, it has to be someone Sirius could beat in a fight," Gabe said.

"That's true," Hastings said. "How about…one of the first years?"

The other laughed, "That's perfect. I'll go speak with one first thing in the morning." Odessa said.

"Oh! I know who it should be." Sirius said, joining in.

"Who?" Hastings asked.

"Michael Creevey. I think he weighs about eighty pounds. I should able to take him out."

"Just by sitting on him," Odessa said.

"Perfect!" Hastings said. "Then we have it all planned out."

"Hey guys, look at the tree." Gabe said. The others backed away and stared up at the giant tree, covered with twinkling fairies, candles, baubles, tinsel, icicles and a giant star on top.

"Gorgeous," Odessa said.

"Breath taking," Sirius added.

"I love Christmas," Hastings said. "What do you say we go into Hogsmeade and have some hot cocoa?"

"Or hot butter beer," Sirius said.

"That works too," Hastings said.

"I'm game," Gabe said. "Odessa?"

"Sounds perfect. Let's go." Making a quick trip to their rooms for their cloaks the foursome tromped out in the snow towards The Three Broomsticks.


	25. Chapter 25

They walked amongst students who were going back and forth to Hogsmeade for the last visit before Christmas, carrying parcels and laughing happily. Getting into the spirit, Hastings linked arms with Odessa and Sirius and started to sing loudly, "HERE WE COME A-WASSALING AMONG THE LEAVES SO GREEN! HERE WE COME A-W—hey! Gabriel, join in with us!"

Gabriel took Odessa's other arm, and the four of them skipped down the road to Hogsmeade with the students laughing at them and singing along. Eventually someone tripped and everyone fell into the snow. The next few minutes were marked with an impromptu snowball fight started by Hastings.

Though she had many well-aimed hits, her moment of triumph was when she smacked Gabe right in the face with a snowball, and he bent over, sputtering. Smiling, but concerned that she'd hurt him, she walked over to him and rested her mittened hand on his back, saying, "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to hit you so—"

Gabe stood up, his long hair damp with snow, and shook it in her face, then grabbed her shoulders and swung her to the ground, effectively pinning her. Everyone around them laughed harder than ever as Gabe attempted to burry Hastings in the snow. "Hey!" said Hastings. "It's… going… down… my shirt," she shouted, laughing and shivering at the same time. He eventually stood up, hands in the air like a champion, bowing at the cheers of everybody, and Hastings sat up, a little dazed, but smiling.

Gabe reached his hand down and said, "Truce?"

Hastings took his hand, smiled sweetly, and said, "Not for the life of my pet hamster." She pulled with all her might, swung her legs around to trip him, vaulted herself up, and pinned him.

"Wow," said Gabe. "You really _do_ know Muggle self-defense! Impressive!" They both stood up, panting and shaking the snow off, then continued down the path.

Sirius looked at Odessa and whispered, "Only a matter of time."

"Yeah," said Odessa quietly, watching Hastings and Gabe look into the window of the Hogsmeade Branch of Weasely's Wizard Wheezes.

"Come on, you two," she yelled to Hastings and Gabe. "We need to get into the Three Broomsticks before it gets too crowded."

They walked down the street and entered the pub, which was already packed, but they were able to find a table close to the bar.

"I'll order drinks," said Sirius.

"I'll come and help," said Gabe.

"Cocoa, please," said Hastings.

"Same for me," said Odessa. When the two of them were gone, Odessa said, "Okay, you have to give now. What was all that snow wrestling about?"

"What to you mean?" asked Hastings, blushing and clicking her fingernails on the wood of the table innocently.

"Are you kidding me? I thought he was going to make out with you right there, in front of everyone!"

"You have to be joking," said Hastings. "He doesn't think of me that way. He told me that."

"That was awhile ago," said Odessa. "Feelings change, you know."

"Well, his haven't," said Hastings.

"But you're just as smitten as ever," said Odessa.

Hastings grinned, "You'd better believe it." The bell over the door rang and the girls looked up to see Falcon Puddinghaste walking in. He looked at them, smiled, and headed over to their table.

"So, things got a little crazy outside," said Sirius, just after they'd ordered drinks.

"Yeah," said Gabe, smiling. "Things are fun with Hastings around."

"More than fun, am I right?" asked Sirius, taking two mugs from the counter and passing them to Gabe, then taking two more himself.

"What are you saying" asked Gabe as they started to walk back.

"Oh, nothing, nothing. It's just… what's he doing here?" Sirius nodded toward the table, and Gabe's eyes followed his gaze.

"Oh, it's Doctor Puddinghaste," he said. "I thought he was going back to St. Mungo's for the holidays."

"Looks like he's sticking around," said Sirius. They came to the table and set the drinks down. "Hi, Falcon," he said, resisting the urge to punch him.

"Hello, Sirius," said Falcon. "I was just telling Hastings how lovely she looked, covered in snow." Hastings blushed and looked at the ground. "Perhaps you can explain to me why she's not interested in going with me to—" He looked at Gabe, then nodded and said, "Oh, I see. Hello, Gabriel. How are you today?"

"Just fine," said Gabe, watching the two closely.

"As I was saying," said Falcon. "I asked Hastings if she was interested in going with me to get a coffee at Madam Puddifoots. She's turned me down."

"Because we broke up," said Hastings. Falcon sat next to her, ignoring that it was Gabe's chair.

"I've been doing some thinking. We should get back together," he said, taking her hand. She pulled away slightly and looked at Odessa, who looked at Sirius. He patted her hand. "I know I was a jerk before…and that I said things I shouldn't, but –"

"Please, Falcon, don't—"

"Don't what?" he asked, smiling his most charming smile.

"Please, I asked you to stop," Hastings pulled away from him and looked pleadingly at Gabe.

Gabe grabbed Falcon by the front of his cloak and jerked him up. "The lady doesn't wish to be touched," he said, staring him in the eye.

"Now, now," said Falcon, "I was just—"

"You were just finished," said Gabe. He shoved him off and nodded toward the door.

Falcon pulled at his cloak, straightening it. "I see you make quick work at finding a new man, Hastings," he said. "You could have had St Mungo's finest Medi-Wizard. Pity you chose the…" he looked as if he smelled something foul. "School nurse."

Gabe looked ready to tackle him. Sirius stood up, patting Gabe on the shoulder, "Okay!" he said loudly. "I think that's enough of that. We have nothing else to say to you Falcon. Leave. Or you'll have the school nurse and the resident transfiguration teacher to deal with. And believe me, Falcon, we can make you fit your name better—shall we turn him into pudding, you think?"

"Sounds fun," said Gabe, flexing his hands into fists.

Falcon didn't say another word, but turned on his heel and left.

"Jerk," Odessa said, watching him leave. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Hastings said with a grateful smile at Gabe and Sirius. "He just creeps me out. Don't know why he didn't before."

"Change of perception," Odessa said with a smile. "You guys can sit down now, he's long gone," she added to Sirius and Gabe who were still staring menacingly at the door.

"Yeah, come one guys, let's enjoy the rest of our day," Hastings added.

"I just can't believe that guy was ever my friend," Sirius said, sitting down.

"Let's stop talking about the cad, he's ruining my hot chocolate," Odessa said. "Besides, we should be celebrating. The kids go home tomorrow and we have two glorious weeks of freedom. Only five students have put their names down to stay this year, it'll be fun. Unless any of you are planning on going home for Christmas and I wasn't aware of it."

"I'm staying," Sirius said. "Dad and Mum are going to Grandma and Grandpa's place for Christmas. There'll be so many people there I won't be missed. Besides, I have someone else I want to spend Christmas with." He squeezed Odessa's hand.

"My parents are going to France this year," Hastings said. "Invited me along, but I hate going to Paris during the holidays, too many tourists."

"I'm staying as well," Gabe said. "People get sick during breaks."

"Well then, we'll have a jolly good time, won't we?" Odessa said.

"Perfectly jolly," Hastings agree.

"Too Christmas," Sirius said, raising his mug.

"Too Christmas," the others chimed, clanging their mugs together.


	26. Chapter 26

It was the first day of Christmas break, and Hastings was up early as usual, tying her trainers so she could go on her morning walk. She smiled when she thought of what Odessa would say if she saw her up this early. "_You know you're crazy, right_?" Hastings fastened her cloak around her shoulders and grabbed a book off the shelf, The Werewolf and the Changeling, by N. Tonks-Lupin. She always enjoyed a well-written romance. She decided her morning would be spent with a walk around the frozen lake—while reading—followed by a huge breakfast, and perhaps a trip to Hogsmeade to finish some Christmas shopping. She'd already gotten Sirius his present—a wizard action figure that she'd bewitched to say, "I am a Dark Lord. You will never defeat me!", a stethoscope and box of Band-Aids for Gabe—who'd expressed a minor fascination with Muggle medicine, and a few small odds end ends for the other teachers. She had yet to find Odessa something.

Most of the shops in Hogsmeade seemed to be geared toward students, and it was hard to find something of a serious nature. Fun things for the guys were okay, but for her friend, she wanted something special. She didn't want to give her a restocking of potions or anything she could use for school, but something that she would truly appreciate.

After an hour of walking, Hastings was half way through her bookwhen she slipped on the ice of the black lake, landing on her hip. Her book flew out of her hands and slid across the ice, hitting someone's foot. She looked up and saw Gabe standing there, arms folded and smiling at her.

"So, that's how you treat my mother's published works?" he asked, grinning. "Throwing them across the Black Lake?"

"Gabe! Uh… Sorry about that. I, uh… slipped… and, well…"

"No worries," said Gabe, picking up the book. "Oh, this one…" he said, looking at the cover.

Hastings stood up. "What's that supposed to mean? 'Oh, this one…'"

"Oh, nothing," said Gabe. "It's a good book, actually. Well-written. One just doesn't like to think of one's own parents as being romantic with each other. Kind of ruins the story, actually."

"Oh," said Hastings, smiling, "I can see how that would be. I wouldn't want to read about how my mum and dad got together…"

"Didn't think so," said Gabe. "Have you come to the part about me yet?"

"You're in this book?" asked Hastings.

"Sure. There's a whole chapter about whether they should or should not have me. What with mum being a metamorphmagus and my dad being a werewolf. I guess they weren't sure how I'd come out."

Hastings sized him up and said, "Well, I'd say you came together very nicely." Gabe blushed and Hastings tried not to cover her face in embarrassment. "Uh, I mean… you don't seem to have any… um, special attributes."

"Oh, not at all," said Gabe with a half smile. "There's nothing special about me at all…"

"Oh, I didn't mean that either," said Hastings, "Everything came out all wrong." Gabe laughed, and Hastings joined in, in spite of her embarrassment. "So, ahem… do… do you have any… um, abilities?"

"No," said Gabe, "As normal and uninteresting as they come, I'm afraid."

"But when we met you said you were a half-wolf…" said Hastings.

"As a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, you of all people should know that werewolfism isn't hereditary," said Gabe. "I was only joking with you."

"Oh, well… I knew that," said Hastings. "I meant… I guess, well, I don't know what I meant."

"That's okay," said Gabe. Then, without warning, he said, "Do you want to have a coffee with me?"

"Um… sure," said Hastings. "Like, up in the Great Hall?"

"No," said Gabe. "Hogsmeade. Madam Puddifoots."

Hastings was the one blushing now. "Isn't that usually… filled with… like, couples?"

Gabe faltered, "Well, yeah," he said, "But it also happens to be the only coffee shop in town, though I'm sure Madam Rosemerta over at the Broomsticks would be happy to brew some up…"

"Oh, no," said Hastings, "Madam Puddifoots is fine. Besides… it's six a.m. I doubt anyone will be around. They began walking to Hogsmeade. "Oh, after eight, I wanted to do some shopping. I still haven't gotten Odessa's Christmas present yet."

"Oh," said Gabe. "That's fine. I need to get Minerva something still. I'd be happy to tag along, if… well, if you're interested."

"Oh, that would be great!" said Hastings, a little more excitedly than she intended.

By the time they got to Madam Puddifoots, they were talking about everything and nothing, completely comfortable with each other, whether they were laughing and joking, or engaging in a heated debate about the properties of certain curses.

They ordered their coffees and took a seat. Throughout the morning, they talked as old friends, and Gabe wondered if there would ever be something there other than that. Every time he mentioned something about relationships, even if he attempted to do so offhandedly, she became instantly uncomfortable, as if she wanted him to change the subject. He was beginning to think himself ridiculous for wanting there to be more than that with Hastings, after all, she _did_ only see him as a friend. He thought that the other day, when he'd defended her against that prat Healer, Puddinghaste, it would endear him to her. Apparently, he was wrong. So, for the rest of the morning and afternoon, he decided to just enjoy her company.

Hastings was struggling was as well. Whenever Gabe brought up the mention of relationships, she had to fiercely remind herself that he wasn't talking about her—he'd made it clear that he wanted nothing more than friendship. So she tried to steer things away whenever the subject was breeched so that he wouldn't think she was dwelling on it. It became exhausting by around lunch time, and Hastings wanted to scream.

They'd decided to go to the Three Broomsticks in the middle of their shopping—neither had bought anything yet—for soup and hot Butter Beer. Madam Rosemerta stopped by their table to chat as she was giving them their order. "Here you are, loves," she said, placing hot tomato-pumpkin soup before them. "And I must say, it is good to see you here together."

Hastings looked at Gabe for an instant, he was smiling. "Good to see you too, Madam Rosemerta," she said.

"You just won't believe the fun times I've had, debating with the other teachers about how long it would take," she said.

"What… do you mean, Rosemerta?" asked Gabe.

"Oh," she said, "Isabella Vector and I have had a bet going. She said you'd never get around to it. I gave you to Christmas. Looks like I win!"

"Uh… what was the bet about?" asked Hastings, dreading the answer.

"What I really want to know," said Madam Rosemerta, "Is who cracked whom first?" She looked at Gabe, who's ears were an impossible shade of red. "Did she ask you out? Or did you declare your love in the midst of your rubber chicken debate?"

"Um…" said Gabe.

"We—we're not… not…" said Hastings.

"I think you are very much mistaken," said Gabe. "We're just friends. We've never…"

Madam Rosemerta laughed out loud, not in the least chagrinned at her mistake. "So, you _haven't_ talked about it yet, have you?" She took their blank stares for an answer. "Well, you certainly will now, won't you, dears?" She continued laughing as she walked off to the kitchen. Looking back, she called, "You're meal's on the house… for winning me five galleons!"

Gabe and Hastings just stared at each other. Hastings felt it was her responsibility to stop things right there. She didn't want to scare him off by refusing to say anything. But when she opened her mouth, all she could say was, "Gabe… I…"

Funnily enough, that was the precise moment when Gabe said, "Hastings… I…"

Without another word, embarrassed beyond all measure, the only thing Hastings could think of to do was to leave. "I… I have to go…" she said uncertainly. She stood up and left the Three Broomsticks, leaving Gabe sitting confused at the table.

Rosemerta, who had been spying from the kitchen, said, "Well, lad, are you going after her or aren't you?"

Gabe stood up, and ran out the door in pursuit of Hastings.

_Oh, you idiot!_ Hastings was calling herself all the names she could think of, realizing that she wouldn't be able to avoid Gabriel Lupin for the rest of the school year, and wishing she hadn't been so obvious. She should have laughed it off as a funny mistake. She should have emphatically denied it. She should have walked faster, because in a few moments' time she heard running footfalls behind her and Gabe calling her name.

"Hastings! Would you slow down?" He ran up beside her. "Geez, can we just talk about this?"

"Not just now," said Hastings. "I… have to get some curriculum planned for next term. Lots to do… Can't take any more time off. You understand."

"No, I don't!" said Gabe, grasping her arm and forcing her to stop.

"Look, it was just a mistake," she said, "We don't have to talk about this. It's only…"

"You're right," said Gabe. He turned her to face him. The snow was falling now; large, white flakes fell softly around them and on their heads. "We don't need to talk about it." His head moved toward hers, tilting to the side, and he kissed her. After a few moments, Hastings pulled away. She looked at him. "Sorry," he said, "I just wanted to see if you—"

Hastings's arms went around his neck, and pulling him toward her, she kissed him back.

Sirius and Odessa were walking down to the great hall together for some afternoon tea. "I wonder where they could have gone," said Odessa. "It's not like Hastings to be gone all day."

"Gabe too," said Sirius. "Though he did mention the need to finish some shopping in Hogsmeade. The two of them, I swear…"

"I know," said Odessa, "Both morning people. They really should get together sometime."

"Whereas the two of us are more likely to sleep till noon," said Sirius.

"That's the truth," said Odessa. "But then again, I cannot understand why anyone would give up their warm bed for a cold walk." They walked into the great hall and saw a few students sitting at the Ravenclaw table, playing Exploding Snap.

"Hello, Professors," said Cassius Weasely.

"Good afternoon, Cassius," said Odessa. "Who's winning?"

"I was…" said Cassius, "But then Olivia went and cursed the cards."

"Atta girl, Olivia," said Sirius. They watched the game for a few more minutes when Odessa nudged Sirius in the robs, "Look," she whispered. Sirius looked toward the head table and saw Hastings and Gabe at one corner, heads in close, whispering to each other and not touching their food. Their fingers were interlocked on the table.

"I knew it!" said Odessa.

"You definitely called it," said Sirius. The two of them jogged up to the head table, and noisily sat down next to Hastings and Gabe.

"Oh, hello," said Hastings.

"Well, we just can't leave you two alone, can we?" asked Odessa cheerfully.

"Well done, mate," said Sirius, patting Gabe on the back.

"Thanks," said Gabe, kissing Hastings's hand.


	27. Chapter 27

The holidays passed in a blur, and before anyone was ready the students returned in full force. Odessa tried to make her lessons fun, but more and more of her students were being obstinate and rude, no matter what she did. After assigning her third detention in a class Odessa asked them all to stop what they were doing.

"Obviously something is wrong," she said, looking them each in the eye. "Before Christmas you all seemed to love my class, or at least tolerate it rather well. But now you're rude, speaking out, purposefully not doing your homework. What has gotten into you?"

The class just stared at their feet, refusing to look at her.

"Anyone?" Odessa asked. She was answered with silence. "Okay then, get back to work. And don't think that I won't fail you if you don't do your work."

"Professor Greene won't let you," someone in the back muttered.

"I assure you she will," Odessa said. "And Professor McGonagall will back me up too. She may be in the hospital, but she's still in charge of this school. Now back to work." The day dragged on as her students continued to be less-than-thrilled to be in her classroom. Odessa was relieved when the day finally ended. Tired, she went up to the Great Hall for dinner.

"Bad day?" Sirius asked.

"You could say that." Odessa said. "The students have turned against me. They won't do their homework, they're goofing off in class, they're disrespectful. I've never had this kind of trouble before. I can't trust them with the potions anymore, I think I'm going to have them all write an essay tomorrow on what good behavior is."

"That's rough," Sirius said.

"You mean they haven't been acting that way towards you?" Odessa asked.

"Nope," Sirius said. "They seem a bit more out of it than usual, but I figure that's because they just got back from break."

"Why do they hate me then?" Odessa asked, burying her face in her hands.

"Who hates you?" Hastings asked, taking a seat.

"The kids," Odessa said.

"They don't hate you," Hastings said.

"Oh yes they do. If you saw how they were acting out in class. It's pure anarchy. I need to talk to Jade about this." Odessa paused, "Are you not having problems?"

"None," Hastings said.

"Then why do they hate me?"

"Perhaps they just had a bad day," Sirius said.

"Bad day my foot. Jade!" Odessa waved at Professor Greene.

"What is it?" She asked, coming over.

"It's my students – I think they all hate me."

"I doubt that, Odessa. Why would you think such a thing?"

"Because of they way they behaved today. And for the past week. The first week back they were all…normal. But this week more and more of them have been increasingly rude. They haven't done their homework. I just don't know what to think. I handed out thirteen detentions today. _Thirteen!_ That's more than I've handed out all year."

Professor Greene smiled gently, "Let me know if the same thing happens tomorrow. If it does, I'll speak to the students personally, okay?"

"Thanks Jade," Odessa said with a small smile. "I appreciate it."

"You're welcome dear. Now, let's eat, shall we"?

Odessa braced herself before walking into her classroom. "You can do this," she muttered under her breath. Forcing a smile on her face, Odessa walked into the room. "Good morning everyone. Please put your homework on my desk." Odessa waited for the scowls and excuses to start, but to her surprise everyone stood up and handed in their homework. A few even smiled and said good morning. Odessa didn't know what to think.

"Um, I'm glad to see that you're in a better mood today than you were a few days ago," she said. "Today we're going to work on…" she glanced at her notes and saw that she had written down "Behavior Essay." "Um, today I'm going to let you decide which potion you want to brew," she improvised. "There are three listed in Chapter 15. During the next three days we will be brewing each of these potions. You can decide which one you want to do first. Have fun." Odessa walked the aisles as she normally did during class and was greeted with hello's, asked questions, and overall treated as she normally was. Nonplussed, she sat at her desk as her last class before lunch walked out.

"Coming to lunch?" Gabe asked, sticking his head in.

"Yes. What are you doing down here?"

"Would you believe I need more Pepper Up potion?"

"No," Odessa said. "Why are you really down here?"

"Because I need more Pepper Up potion." Gabe said, walking in. "There's something going around. Kids keep coming in sick. I've cleaned out the apothecary. Can you make some?"

"Of course," Odessa said, grabbing the ingredients. "It's an easy one. I'm surprised you've gone through so much."

"Me too," Gabe said. "The potion only seems to be working for a short amount of time and then they're back just as sick as before. I don't want to give them anything stronger until I know what's wrong. But I have yet to figure it out."

"Seems like something's wrong with the students. Mine are going through menopause and yours keep getting sick."

"I'm sorry," Gabe said, looking confused. "Did you say menopause?"

"Yeah," Odessa smile. "They keep having severe mood changes. And it isn't of the normal teen variety. Did Hastings tell you about how my students have been acting?"

"She mentioned it last night."

"Well today they were all sunshine and roses. I didn't know what to think."

"Perhaps Jade spoke with them," Gabe suggested.

"It's possible," Odessa said. "I didn't think she was going to unless it happened again, but perhaps she took pity on me."

"Odessa," Professor Vector stuck her head in. "I just wanted to let you know that I finished my potion."

"That's great Isabella!"

"Thanks." Professor said. "Unfortunately I think I've used all of the ingredients you loaned me. If you make up a list I'll order the supplies for you."

"No need," Odessa said. "I've been keeping my shelves stocked. Besides, I'm glad I was a part of it in some small way. You know, you could sell that potion."

"I'm thinking about it, but then I keep thinking of all the ministry guidelines that'll be put on it. I might just keep it for myself."

"You could sell it to the Weasley brothers," Gabe said. "I'm sure they'd find a good use for it."  
"I have no doubt that the use they found for it would be anything but good," Professor Vector said wryly. "No, I think I'll keep it to myself for awhile."

"Keep what to yourself?" Falcon asked as he walked in.

"What are you doing here?" Odessa asked snidely, waving goodbye to Isabella.

"I came to see what was taking Gabe so long with the Pepper Up potion." Falcon replied. "It should be ready by now."

"I was just about to bottle it up," Odessa said.

"Are you sure you didn't ruin it?" Falcon asked, bending over and smelling it.

"Yes, I'm sure," Odessa said through gritted teeth.

"I'll be back up in a minute," Gabe said.

"See that you are," Falcon said. "You know, next time I might ask Professor O'Reilly to brew up the potion. It certainly wouldn't take as long."

"Too bad he isn't here," Odessa muttered.

"But he is," Falcon said. "Stopped by to say hello. Anyway, I'll see you upstairs Nurse Lupin."

"He really is a jerk," Odessa said. "Why do you let him speak to you like that."

"Unfortunately, he reported the little incident that happened in The Three Broomsticks. St. Mungo's put me on probation. Professor Greene protested, but there wasn't anything she could do. I have to be on my best behavior now."

"Lovely," said Odessa. "Here's your potion. Oh, and if Falcon gets sick send him to me for a remedy. St. Mungo's can't touch me."

"I'd be glad to," Gabe said, taking the potion. "Thanks. And sorry, I've taken up your lunch hour."

"Don't worry about it. I need to spend the last few minutes deciding what my class should do if they actually come in and behave. I was going to have them all write essays on appropriate behavior but…" Odessa shrugged, "doesn't look like they need it at the moment."

"Have fun," Gabe said, leaving.

"I'll try," Odessa said, sitting back down at her desk. "As long as O'Reilly doesn't decide to poke his ugly face in here."

Hastings, on the other hand, was having to confiscate items from her normally very attentive fourth years. She'd been jinxed several times already during the class, and had given out eight detentions, plus taken at least one hundred points from each house. Finally, toward the end of class, she had her students line up and tackle a Boggart that was in her closet. She attempted to rest as the students were turning it into various amusing things, but had little success with that.

At one point, the boggart had turned into a giant, man-eating plant, and had caught hold of Veronica Miles—a fourth year Gryffindor—by the foot. Hastings had to turn the boggart upon herself and fight it off.

"Ridikulus!" She yelled, pointing her wand at the boggart. It vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Nicely done Professor," George Wilson said. Hastings opened her mouth to thank him but was quickly cut off by his next words, "Too bad you always have to show off and don't give any of us students a chance."

"Detention, Mr. Wilson," Hastings said. "And that will apply to the rest of you if you don't sit down and behave." Groans of protest were heard throughout the room. "I don't want to hear it," Hastings said. "If you don't want to be scrubbing chamber pots with your bare hands then I suggest you sit down and write an essay on appropriate behavior in the classroom. Any deviation from the subject, or sarcasm, will guarantee you a date with those chamber pots." Hastings ignored the dirty looks that were thrown her way and sat down at her desk, staring at her students. What had gotten into them?

"Okay Odessa," Hastings cornered her friend later that night in the common room. "I want to know why the students all turned on me today."

"They turned on you?" Odessa looked surprised. "They were perfect angels for me today."

"Did you bribe them?" Hastings asked.

"Bribe them?"

"To be good in your class and misbehave in mine?"

"Um, not likely, although it's not a bad idea. I'll have to remember that in the future. Why do you ask?" Odessa said.

"I just can't figure it out. First you and now me. What's going on?" Hastings said, sitting on the couch.

"Hello ladies, mind if we join you?" Gabe and Sirius walked in.

"Not at all," Hastings said with a smile.

"We're just trying to solve the world's problems," Odessa added, scooting over to make room for Sirius.

"And what's wrong with the world today?" Gabe asked, sitting next to Hastings.

"The students have revolted." Hastings said.

"But you said they were good today," Gabe said, looking at Odessa.

"They were," Odessa said. "But only in my class. Did you have problems Sirius?"

"Actually, yes, I did," Sirius said. "I was tempted to transfigure them all into docile rats. Instead I remembered Odessa's comments and made them write essays on proper behavior.

Hastings burst out laughing, "I did the same thing! I have a feeling I might be cursed again tomorrow."

"At least you'll be cursed together," Odessa said with a grin. "Seriously though, what do you think's going on with the students?"

"No idea," Gabe said. "And what's worse is that Professor McGonagall keeps getting worse and the doctor's have no idea what's wrong."

"You know what we need to do?" Odessa asked. "We need to start following around the other professors. One of them is responsible and we need to find out who."

"Do you really think that's necessary?" Hastings asked.

"Yes, I do," Odessa said. "A student couldn't be causing this. Here's my plan: Hastings will follow Isabella, Gabe will follow Jade, and I will follow O'Reilly."

"And who am I suppose to follow?" Sirius asked.

"The others."

"The other teachers? Why do I get all the rest?"

"Because you're the master of transfiguration," Odessa said. "That's why. And because you have the most tenure thus you also have the most free time."

"I still don't think it's fair."

"So?" Odessa said, completely unsympathetically.

"Fine, fine, I'll follow the rest," Sirius said.

"Everyone else okay with this?" Odessa asked. Hastings and Gabe reluctantly nodded. "Great then, let's get to bed."


	28. Chapter 28

It was lunch the next day before anyone had a chance to catch up with what was going on. Hastings was walking in from her class—which was much better behaved this morning, and nearly ran into Gabe, coming from the hospital wing. "Of all the stupidest, uncaring… Oh, hi, Haste," he said, kissing her cheek.

"What's wrong?" asked Hastings.

"Kids keep on coming in and messing with my supplies. They're wreaking havoc on the entire wing. I threatened to remove all their bones. That shut them up… temporarily. And that prat, Puddinghaste… I swear, I may just curse him one day.

"Lunch break, then?"

"Yes, Healer Puddinghaste is there. He's horrible, Hastings, he really is."

"I could have told you that, Gabe," said Hastings. "I dated him, remember?"

"Yeah, and I have no idea why. What a jerk." They sat at the head table, where Sirius was sitting.

"Hey, Sirius," said Hastings, "Have you seen Odessa?"

"Nah," said Sirius, his fork poking at his steak and kidney pie.

"Bad day, mate?" asked Gabe.

"Yes," said Sirius. "If they were difficult in your classes, they were absolute terrors in mine. They turned my wand into a bleeding teapot. I couldn't get them to change it back. They dropped it, and it shattered. Now I have to go to Diagon Alley to get a new one this weekend.

"Mine were better today," said Hastings. "But second hour is free, so I used the time to see professor Vector."

"Oh yeah?" asked Gabe. "And was she doing anything weird?"

"Just made me look through the telescope and diagram star charts for an hour. Boring, if you ask me. I asked her as casually as I could if she'd noticed anything strange about the students. She said nothing out of the ordinary."

""Well, Jade came in to get some pepper up," said Gabe. "She seemed concerned about something. I think she's begun to notice something going on. At least she'll probably do something about it."

"What about you, Sirius?" asked Hastings.

"No one is doing anything out of the usual—aside from the students."

"Hmm… wonder how Odessa's doing," said Hastings. "Where is that woman?"

Odessa was in her store room, cleaning the shelves and updating her list of potions. Some of them would have to be bought in London—Hogsmeade didn't carry everything. She decided she'd see if the others wanted to go over the weekend for a mini-break.

The door to the storeroom opened, admitting O'Reilly. "Hello," he said.

"Oh… hello," said Odessa. "Is there… something I can help you with?" In the close quarters of the storeroom, with him blocking the doorway, Odessa decided the best thing to do was be as polite as possible.

"Indeed," he said. "I know you don't trust me… but—I believe there is something strange going on here. I have heard several complaints about students acting up. I decided to make an inquiry."

_Why, that dirty sneak,_ thought Odessa. _He's trying to get on my good side. I'd better humor him._ "Uh… strange?" she asked, innocently.

"Surely you've noticed… behavioral differences," said O'Reilly. "I wonder if you would join me in a cup of tea. I have some… information that might be of use to you."

"I'm not sure," said Odessa, stalling. "I have… so many potions to inventory. And then I need to meet the others…"

"It will only take a minute," said O'Reilly, actually smiling kindly. "It's about a matter we discussed earlier." He whispered, "Professor Greene, you know. I think she has an accomplice… and I think it's Mr. Puddinghaste."

Suddenly interested, and because she had a personal vendetta against Falcon, she said, "Very well, Professor O'Reilly, I'll go with you. Only for a moment, though."

They walked to Odessa's office, and she made a pot of tea. While she was getting things ready, O'Reilly remarked, "You certainly have exceeded my expectations this year, Odessa." She looked at him, expecting to see a sneer, but instead she saw genuine appreciation. "It would seem my start of term concern was misplaced."

Odessa nodded, unsure of what to say. She placed two cups on the desk, then turned back to the teapot, magically heating on a shelf. When she turned back, she saw O'Reilly close to her desk, playing with a cup.

"This is a lovely set," he said, placing the cup down and picking up the other one to exam. "Where did you get it?"

"It was my mother's," Odessa said, pouring his tea, then her own. She sat at her desk and said, "So, Professor, what is this about Falcon?"

"I do wish you would refer to me as an equal, Odessa," he said. His friendly manner infuriated her and she struggled to keep a smile on her face. "Feel free to call me Malcolm."

"Very well, Malcolm," said Odessa. "What do you have to say?"

"He was the attending healer for Professor McGonagall before he was asked to come back here," said O'Reilly. "I spent a lot of time there, before the holidays. Watching her after he left, she seemed to improve slightly. Then, professor Greene came for a visit—she brought her some flowers and chocolates. Minerva's health started to decline again."

"She shouldn't be eating anything without it being checked first, I suppose," said Odessa. "But, come on. Jade? She'd never…"

"I have been doing some research on her," said O'Reilly. "Do you know that she was raised in Tibet? Never even attended Hogwarts. Her mother, a single woman, was a known follower of Voldemort."

Odessa nearly spit out her tea. "I'm not going to ask how you know that, Malcolm," she said, "But even if it's true, Professor Greene couldn't be his follower. She was after his time. It's… it's… Goodness, it's warm in here… Malcolm. She smiled at him, realizing suddenly how good looking he was for an older man. Realizing what she was doing, she shook her head, as if to clear it. She took another sip of her tea.

"Oh, but it is true," said Malcolm, in a voice that made Odessa shiver. "Professor Greene's mother was, in fact, a consort of Lord Voldemort for a time. It is thought that Professor Greene is his heir. It is a little warm," he said. "You look very lovely today, if you don't mind my saying…"

"Why, Malcolm," said Odessa, "You shouldn't… I'm dating Sirius… that is… you are certainly capable of turning a girl's head, to be sure…"

"And the way your head turns is a beautiful thing…" said O'Reilly, standing up.

"Well, I for one want to talk to Odessa," said Hastings. "Let's go find her. It's not like her to work through lunch. Let's go to her office."

"Odessa?" Hastings knocked on Odessa's office door and peered in. Odessa was sitting at her desk peering dreamily into her teacup. "Are you okay?"

Odessa jumped at the interruption and smiled as Hastings, Sirius and Gabe walked in. "Oh, I'm fine. I just had the most interesting conversation with Malcolm," Odessa giggled. "He is a rather handsome man, isn't he? Anyway, he mentioned that Professor Greene is Voldemort's heir. He looked so…in charge and…strong. You know, I think we misjudged him." Odessa smiled and took a sip of her tea. "In fact, I'm thinking about inviting him to co-teach with me. What do you think? Do you think I'm too young for him?" She took another sip of her tea, completely oblivious to the looks the other three were giving her.

"Are you okay, Odessa?" Sirius asked.

"Just fine Sirius, thank you. Oh, and I hope you don't mind me going on and on about Malcolm, he's just so…so… wonderful. And he's a brilliant potions master. And his eyes," Odessa giggled again, "he has bedroom eyes, don't you think?"

"Um…Odessa, are you sure you're okay?" Hastings asked.

"Oh yes, I'm sure." Odessa said. "But if you all would be so kind as to excuse me, I need to go get ready for my next class. Malcolm might stop in and, well, I'm not really dressed appropriately." Odessa motioned towards her class robes and sailed out the door, still occasionally giggling to herself. Gabe reached over and picked up her cup of tea. He studied the color for a few minutes and then took a whiff. He paused for a moment and then smelled it again.

"That explains it," he said, putting the cup down.

"Is there a love potion in there?" Hastings asked. Sirius reached over and smelled the contents of the cup for himself.

"It doesn't smell like a love potion," he said.

"It's not a love potion, per se," Gabe said. "It's a subtlety potion mixed with a love potion. Can you smell the lavender? Basically it makes the person who drinks it totally enamored with whoever made the potion, but without the side effects of most love potions – mainly having the drinker following the other person around."

"So what you're saying is that it makes it look like Odessa fell in love with Mr. O'Reilly on her own?" Sirius asked. Gabe nodded.

"I'm going to kill that man!" Sirius hit Odessa's desk with his hand. "Do you know the antidote?"

"Um, no I don't. I know the antidote for the love potion alone, but it probably won't be effective since it's a combined potion."

"We could at least try," Hastings said. "Does she have anything already prepared?"

Gabe opened the cabinets and started rummaging around. "I don't see…oh wait, here's something." He emerged holding a small bottle with a dark, inky potion inside. "Give me a clean cup." Gabe poured some more tea into it and added the potion. It dissolved instantly.

"Do you think it'll work?" Hastings asked.

"I honestly don't know," Gabe said.

"Will it hurt her?" Sirius asked.

"No, that it won't. Thankfully it's harmless."

"Good." Sirius said, taking the cup. "I'll just have her take a drink of this-"

"Are you guys still here?" Odessa asked, walking back into the office.

"What are you wearing?" Sirius asked, trying not to gape.

"Do you like it? I think Malcolm will." Odessa twirled to show off her red robes with a slit up the side of her leg and a plunging neckline. She also had on spiked heels and had swept her hair up in an elegant roll. "It's an old gown, it took only a minute to modify it. Thank goodness my mom made me learn how to sew. Why are you all staring at me like that?"

"Um…" Hastings looked around the room and grabbed Odessa's black potion robes. "I think you should wear this over your…er…outfit. You don't want to accidentally spill anything on it."

"That's a great idea, thanks Hastings." Odessa put on the robes. "Now, just imagine how surprised Malcolm will be when I take these old things off after class. Are you okay Sirius?" Sirius' face had turned a bright shade of red and he was gripping the teacup in his hand so tightly it looked ready to shatter. Gabe quickly grabbed it from him.

"Here Odessa, I just warmed up your tea for you."

"Oh, thanks Gabe, but I'm not thirsty."

"Please try it," Hastings said, "I added a new flavor to it and I want to see if you can pick it out."  
"Oh, all right," Odessa said. She took the cup from Gabe and sipped it. "Um…" she sipped it again. "I'm sorry Hastings, I don't taste anything."

"Try it again," Hastings urged. "Perhaps I didn't put enough in."

"Mmmm, nope, nothing." Odessa said. "What'd you put in there?"  
"Um, it's a surprise. I'll have to work on it a bit longer and see if I can get it right."

"Let me know when you do." Odessa glanced at her watch. "Goodness, it's almost time for class to begin. You better get back to your classrooms."

"Oh, um yeah, right. Forgot about that," Hastings said, peering at Odessa. "Do you feel okay?"

"I feel fine, thank you." Odessa said. "Really, you should go."

"She's right," Sirius said, "we should probably get going. I'll see you at dinner." Sirius leaned in to give Odessa a kiss on the cheek but she quickly jumped back.  
"I'm sorry Sirius," she apologized. "I just don't want Malcolm to think that there's anything between us, you understand don't you." She checked her watch again. "I do hope he comes to my class to observe. Hopefully he'll decide to stay late." Odessa smiled to herself and began putting the ingredients for her next class on the board. "I'll see you later," she added when she saw them still standing there.

"Oh, yes, of course, later." Hastings said. She grabbed Sirius' arm and dragged him out of the classroom. Gabe followed.

"I…I…" Sirius sputtered.

"You're not going to do anything," Hastings said. "This is just further proof that O'Reilly is behind everything. We need to focus on curing Odessa first, and then we'll worry about him."

"But-"

"No buts about it, Sirius. O'Reilly probably thinks that you're going to act like you did when you found that letter, and you probably should. Odessa won't care and we need to keep an eye on O'Reilly without him suspecting us, okay?"

"I don't know…" Sirius said.

"You can kill him after we have the evidence against him," Hastings said.

"Promise?"

"Yes, I promise. Now remember, we need to act like we don't suspect anything and that we're upset over you guys breaking up again."

"I bet he found out Odessa was trailing him," Sirius said suddenly. "We all know she's not exactly good at sneaking around. This is probably his way of keeping tabs on her."

"I bet you're right," Gabe said. "All the more reason for you not to do anything Sirius."

"All right already, I'm not going to do anything." Sirius said. "But you better find that antidote quickly. I'll look through my books as well, maybe there's something in there."

"Me too," Hastings piped up.

"Hey guys!" Odessa was walking quickly towards them, trying not to trip over her heels.

"Maybe it worked," Sirius whispered excitedly.

"I forgot that I was going to invite you to London this weekend, there's some potion supplies I'd like to get. Want to come?"

"That'd be great," Sirius said.

Odessa paused for a moment, "Sirius, you have to promise me that if you come that you won't get in the way of Malcolm and I. He's a little possessive of me." Hastings put her hand on Sirius' arm as he opened his mouth to respond.

"I promise," he muttered.

"Great. How about you two?" she asked Gabe and Hastings.

"We'd love to," Hastings said.

"Oh good. Do you think it's okay if I room with Malcolm? I could buy some new lingerie in London. What do you think?"

"I think that we should room together," Hastings said quickly while Gabe prevented Sirius from saying anything. "I really wanted a girl's night and this will be perfect. And then we can talk about Malcolm all that we want. What do you think? I'll even give you a make over."

"That could be fun," Odessa said. "Okay, we'll do it that way. I'll see you later," Odessa waved and walked back towards the dungeons.

"Forget killing him," Sirius said through gritted teeth. "Killing him would be nice. I'm going to torture him everyday for the rest of my life." Sirius marched off to his classroom.

"I'd hate to be one of his students this afternoon," Hastings said to Gabe.

Gabe chuckled, "No kidding. Look, I better get back to the hospital wing before Puddinghaste goes nuts because I took a long lunch."

"And I better get to my class, who knows what they've done by now."


	29. Chapter 29

The week was miserable and Hastings, Gabe, and Sirius were very relieved when the weekend arrived. Odessa was the only one not excited about the trip. All she could talk about was Malcolm O'Reilly, and the fact that he had just announced that he couldn't go with her to Diagon Alley due to some research he needed to do made her incessant chatter even worse.

"What's the point of going?" asked Odessa as they boarded the Hogwarts Express to go to London.

"Come one," said Hastings, "It's gonna be fun. And you can get a new dress to impress Malcolm with."

"I suppose you're right," said Odessa, sighing tragically as the train pulled out of Hogsmeade Station.

"Ruddy git," said Sirius under his breath. He was leaning against the side of the train, staring out the window, and trying not to make a scene. He was rather upset about the fact that he was not sitting next to Odessa, who was increasingly treating him like a brother. Hastings and Gabe were sitting by each other, holding hands, or whispering to each other more times than not, and Sirius felt alone.

"What was that, mate?" asked Gabe.

"Nothing," said Sirius, standing up and stretching. "I'm going to take a walk. If the food trolly comes by, get me something chocolate… I feel like I've faced about fifty Dementors."

"Will do," said Hastings. Sirius walked out of the car and on down the corridor. "We really need to find an antidote." Hastings said to Gabe.

"Agreed," said Gabe.

"Antidote for what?" asked Odessa. "I could make it… what do you need an antidote for?"

"Oh, nothing," said Hastings.

"No, really," said Odessa. "I majored in antidotes at the Potion Masters' Academy. They're my specialty."

Hastings looked at Gabe. Gabe spoke, "Well, see, it's one of the… students."

"What's wrong?" asked Odessa, twirling her wand in her hair, something she hadn't done in months, but seemed to start up once she started thinking about O'Reilly.

"The kids have been misbehaving, as you remember…"

"Not with me," said Odessa. "Well, they did earlier in the week, but they've been as good as gold and better lately. Of course, I think it must be because of the brilliant leadership Malcolm is taking when he visits. Did you know that he's created some of his own potions…he is amazing."

"Well, they've been concocting potions… illegal ones," said Gabe.

"What kind?"

"Subtlety Love Potions," said Hastings, deciding to gamble.

"Oh, those?" asked Odessa. "I could whip up an antidote in no time for something like that. I just need the ingredients. It's a tough potion… Takes two days of brewing and constant stirring. That's why it's so hard to make… the potion maker usually falls asleep, ruining the potion."

"Well, we could take it in shifts," said Hastings. We could have it done by Sunday night… and administer it once we get back to Hogwarts."

"That would be great," said Gabe. "I bet Sirius would help, too…"

"Speaking of Sirius," said Odessa, "Have you noticed he keeps acting inappropriately toward me?"

"He's in love with you," said Hastings bluntly.

"That's obvious," said Odessa. "But I've told him time and again that I'm with Malcolm now. If he keeps on me, I'm going to tell him I don't want to be friends. I swear, some people…"

Sirius came back in, carrying a case of Chocolate Frogs. "I guess you found the food trolley, then?" asked Gabe.

"Yeah," said Sirius. "You all want one?"

"Sure," said Hastings and Gabe.

"None for me, thank you, Professor Potter," said Odessa. "I'm trying to watch my figure for Malcolm."

"You look hot just the way you are, Ode. And since when did you start calling me Professor Potter?" asked Sirius, biting into a frog so it wouldn't hop away.

"Since you started treating our friendship with such flippant irreverence," said Odessa with sneer. "I'm going to ask you one last time: stop flirting with me, or I'll report you."

"Fine," said Sirius, balling up a fist.

"Good news," said Hastings, trying to diffuse the tension. "Odessa here can help us make an antidote for… um, that student who was slipped the Subtlety Love Potion."

"That's great," said Sirius, "The sooner, the better. The blighter's getting on my last nerve."

"I guess you have him as a student too then?" asked Odessa.

"I do," said Sirius, "But you wouldn't know him… he's… a transfer student, from Durmstrang."

"Really?" asked Odessa. "How exciting! I always wanted to have an exchange student. Malcolm speaks fluent Bulgarian, you know and—"

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" asked Hastings.

"Hey," said Gabe. "You guys want to visit Minerva in St. Mungo's while we're here? I bet some friendly faces would do her some good."

"Sounds great," said Odessa. "I can tell her all about Malcolm…"

"And we can tell her of our suspicions about whoever's cursing her," whispered Hastings.

"Sounds great," said Sirius. "Maybe we can also get some magical tape to shut up all the talk about Malcolm…"

"I'm surprised they had all the ingredients," Odessa said to Hastings. "A lot of them are usually on back order because they're so rare."

"Lucky for us then, I think Sirius is about to murder this student."

"Who made the potion? I'd love to meet someone with that type of skill at such a young age, and I know Malcolm would love to take him under his wing."

"Uh…Sirius didn't say. You'd have to ask him."

"Oh, I'd rather not. He's been a git all week. So moody. To think I ever preferred him over Malcolm."

"One can only wonder what you were thinking," Hastings said under her breath.

"Before I forget, I sent Malcolm an owl about the antidote. I wanted to see if he had any suggestions."

"You did what!"

"Asked Malcolm. You know he's the most brilliant potion master since Severus Snape. To bad Snape wasted his skills. And he was never handsome, not like Malcolm. You know, Malcolm has the cutest laugh, it's so…cute. He was talking about moving to Hogsmeade so we could be closer. You know what Haste? I think he's going to propose soon. I think that's where he is right now. He said a research project, but I know that's not the truth. I wouldn't be surprised if he showed up in London to ask. Wouldn't that be romantic?"

"Uh huh," responded Hastings, who had tuned Odessa out while she tried to figure out what to do about Odessa's owl. Why hadn't they thought of that possibility?

"So anyway, he said…are you listening to me?"

"Of course," Hastings said quickly. "I was just trying to remember where we were staying."

"Right here, you ninny," Odessa said, turning into the building in front of them. "I wonder if the guys are back yet."

"I think they're planning on staying out late tonight," Hastings said, remembering her and Gabe's agreement to keep Sirius and Odessa as far apart as possible.

"Hopefully Sirius'll find someone new to drool all over. Come on, let's start the potion." Odessa carefully measured out the ingredients while talking nonstop about Malcolm. "Okay, now it's time to stir. I'll take the first shift because it's the most tricky. I need to make sure that nothing more needs to be added. A lot of times you can't tell right away."

"But you have to be so careful measuring the ingredients," Hastings said.

"That's for the initial reaction," Odessa explained. "Afterwards some changes may need to happen. But only in the first four hours."

"Do you think you can stir for that long."

"Oh yes, I'm sure," Odessa said. "Malcolm says I have strong arms from all the stirring I do. Of course, they're nothing compared to his arms…"

"I'm sure that's true," Hastings quickly interrupted. "I have some shopping that I need to do, stuff for my parents' anniversary. Do you mind if I leave you here?"

"Not at all, have fun. Just send someone back here to relieve me of duty before tomorrow."

"No problem," Hastings said. "I'll see you later." She apparated out of the bed and breakfast and into The Leaky Cauldron where she knew Sirius and Gabe were.

"Okay guys, she's busy. Let's go talk with McGonagall." Hastings said. The guys nodded, quickly finished their drinks and apparated to St. Mungo's.


	30. Chapter 30

Once inside, they were greeted by the receptionist, who told them that Minerva McGonagall was on the fifth floor. They stepped into the lift and headed up. Once inside the room where Minerva was, they were overwhelmed by the smell of flowers coming from the corner where she was.

"What on earth?" asked Hastings. "Who sent all these?"

"I don't know," said Sirius. "We sent her that one bouquet from all the teachers and a card… but there must be over a hundred here!"

They walked over to her bed, where she was reading a book. Professor McGonagall looked wan and thin. If possible, she looked like she'd aged ten yeas. "How are you, Minerva?" asked Gabe.

"Why, Hastings! Gabe! Sirius! How are you all?" said Minerva, her face brightening.

"We're fine," said Hastings. "But how have you been?"

"Fair to middling today," said Minerva. "I always feel a little better when I've had time to myself. Professors O'Reilly and Greene were coming on alternating days, at one point."

"They were?" asked Sirius. "What for?"

"Jade, because she wanted advice," said Minerva. "O'Reilly because… well, who knows why O'Reilly does anything?" They all laughed. "But I have enjoyed the company from time to time. I'm hoping to be released in a few days. Of course… last time I said that, Professor Greene came to offer me her congratulations and help me pack, and I became ill again."

"That's frustrating," said Hastings. "When do you think they'll allow you to go back? A few days, you said, right?"

"Well, I'm hoping for Sunday," said Minerva. "If all goes well."

"You could take the Hogwarts Express back with us." Gabe suggested.

"That would be lovely," said Minerva, "if I can. Professor Greene wanted me to send her an owl if it looked like I was going to get out of here. I suppose I can tell her that I'm coming back with you. That'll be a relief, it's been frightfully dull around here."

"Are… are those Blood Lilies?" asked Hastings, looking at a bundle of white calla lilies in a vase.

"Yes. They're from Jade," said Minerva. "I don't know the slightest thing about plants, but Falcon tells me that its fragrance has healing attributes, although I can't smell them to save my life. I know that if ingested they hurt you… but they are certainly lovely to look at"

"You can't smell them?" asked Gabe. "They usually carry a very pungent odor."

"Jade drained them of sap before giving them to me," said Minerva, "So now they're just like regular lilies."

"Was Jade the one who brought you all the flowers?" asked Sirius, looking around at the various bouquets.

"Well, a mixture of Jade and O'Reilly," said Minerva. "They're usually the only ones who can make it here on a regular basis." She sighed, "I keep wanted to just throw them out and then I think to myself that it'll hurt their feelings, which is just silly."

"We could throw them out for you," offered Hastings.

"That's okay, I'm leaving Sunday so I'll just keep them until then."

"Speaking of Sunday," Sirius said, "We'll be here at 10:00 to pick you up for the 11:00 train. Do we need to speak to the person in charge to get you released?"

"If he were here," said Minerva, "But Falcon seems to be at Hogwarts most of the time."

"That's where he's at right now," said Gabe. "He suggested I come along with these guys for a break. It's been mad at Hogwarts."

"How so?" asked Minerva.

"Many things," said Sirius. "Students acting strangely, one day they behave, and the next they go crazy. Lots of people in the hospital wing, too, right, Gabe?"

"Never been fuller," said Gabe. And Odessa's been given—"

"—Uh, some time off," said Hastings. "For… uh, a rest."

"Where's she at then?" asked Minerva.

"In the hotel… sleeping," said Hastings. "We'll bring her to pick you up on Sunday, we promise."

"Well, I look forward to it," said Minerva. "I suppose I'd better get some rest now. It's nearly eleven o'clock. Did you just arrive on the train?"

"We all only had a half-day of classes," said Hastings, "We got on the first train to London."

"Well, we'll leave you for tonight, then," said Sirius. "You feel better, okay?"

"I'll try, Professor Potter," said Minerva.

"And if you're not allowed to leave, we're kidnapping you and taking you back," said Hastings cheerfully.

"Wonderful," said Minerva, "I would love an adventure."

They left and stopped at the Leaky Caldron, and sat to talk about what had transpired. "We now have more evidence than ever that it's O'Reilly," Hastings said. "But wouldn't Jade pick up on the fact that he was doing something?"

"Maybe she has," said Sirius, "And she keeps coming here to keep an eye on things… maybe countering O'Reilly's jinxing."

Gabe spoke up. "Do you think Jade could be the guilty one?"

"I don't know," Hastings said slowly. "Possibly. I didn't notice anything odd when I was following her around. O'Reilly thinks it's Jade."

"All the more reason to think that it's O'Reilly," Sirius said. "Too bad we can't ask Odessa her opinion, but she'd just tell us how wonderful _Malcolm_ is."

"She means well," said Hastings, "Just think of her as debilitated right now. She can't be allowed to see Minerva while she's like this… Who knows what could happen? She might go on about O'Reilly to Minerva, and we don't want Minerva thinking any better of O'Reilly than she already does."

"But O'Reilly gave her an illegal love potion!" said Sirius. "If we told that to McGonagall, I'm sure she wouldn't trust him anymore."

"We don't have actual proof that he did that," said Gabe, "And we should keep it quiet until Odessa's sorted out. If Minerva confronts O'Reilly, it could be bad. We need him thinking that she's on his side… for the present."

"You're right, of course," said Sirius. "I just hate this waiting. I want…" He rested his head in his hand. Hastings patted him on the shoulder. "I want her back…"

"We all do," said Hastings, "I'm the one who had to sleep in the same room as her… believe me, I want her back to normal. Oh! That reminds me. Someone needs to take a shift fore the first few hours of the night. I don't mind… I guess I can."

"No," said Gabe. "I'll do it…" he came close to Hastings' head and whispered, "Then I can watch you sleep like an angel."

"Ha!" said Hastings, "If you think I'm an angel—"

"You've obviously never been on the receiving end of her temper before," Sirius finished." All of them laughed. After musing things over for another half hour they went back to the Bed & Breakfast to relieve Odessa of her duty. Gabe had the first shift, Hastings would take the second, and then she would wake Sirius for the last four hours of the night.

"I hate this ruddy potion," Sirius muttered. "How many more minutes do I have to stir it before it's complete?"

"Just another minute and it'll be done," Odessa said, studying the potion closely. "You know, you shouldn't complain so much. You need to take things more like a man, like Malcolm does. He never complains."

Sirius gripped the spoon tighter, "I'm sure he doesn't," he said through gritted teeth.

"How do we know if we got the potion right?" Hastings asked.

"Easy, just take a sip of it. If it's done correctly it'll be the color of sapphire and taste faintly of roses."

"Is it okay to drink?" Gabe asked.

Odessa laughed, "I would hope so, since I just suggested it. It's perfectly safe, there's no effect on people who haven't been cursed. It's just like other love potion antidotes, perfectly harmless. You can stop stirring now, Sirius."

Sirius cheered and took the spoon out. "Okay, who wants to taste it?"

"I will, of course," Odessa said, moving over the cauldron. "Malcolm says that a good potion master never allows others to test his potions without first testing them on themselves."

"I'm actually grateful to O'Reilly for that little piece of advice," Sirius whispered to Hastings.

"How much do we need to bottle up for a cure?" Hastings asked.

"Only takes a few drops," Odessa said, dipping the spoon into the potion. "You know, I owled O'Reilly about the potion and I haven't heard back yet. I suppose I'll have to send him another owl and let him know that it turned out fine." Odessa brought the spoon to her mouth and sipped it. "Mmm, tastes perfect," she said. "I think O'Reilly will be really proud of me."

The others looked at each other, trying to suppress a groan, the potion obviously hadn't worked. A knock on the door startled them.

"You don't think it's Minerva, do you?" Hastings asked, going over to the door. "We told her we'd pick her up at the hospital." She opened the door and O'Reilly stormed in.

"Odessa, honey, don't drink that potion!"

Odessa looked at him in surprise, "What are _you_ doing here, you dirty git?"

"Well…" said O'Reilly. "I guess you did drink it, then. No matter. I can always administer the love potion again. You will be mine, Miss Grace." With that, there was a loud popping sound, and he disapparated.

"What was he on?" asked Odessa.

"It's more of… what you were on," said Hastings.

"What are you talking about?"

"Love Potion mixed with Subtlety," said Sirius, "Looks like you're all better now."

"So… It was me the potion was for?" Odessa thought for a moment. "I… remember how I was acting… Oh, no! O'Reilly? That's… that's…"

"That's vile," said Hastings. "But it's going to be okay now. Now we really know we can't trust him."

Gabe said, "I hate to interrupt, but it's time to go pick up Minerva from St. Mungo's. Shouldn't we leave soon?"

"Yes," said Odessa. "It's just occurred to me that she might have another visitor first. O'Reilly just disapparated!"

Without another word, there were four identical pops, and the four of them apparated to St. Mungo's, right into Minerva's room.

"Why, I thought you'd taken long enough," said Minerva. "I am ready to get out of here, let me tell you.

"Minerva," said Hastings, "have you had any visitors besides us today?"

"No," said Minerva, "But I did have an owl from Professor Green asking me when they're supposed to let me out. I haven't answered it. I suppose she hadn't received mine yet letting her know it was today."

"Don't worry about it," said Gabe. "You can talk to her as soon as we get you home."

"Are you all set?" asked Odessa.

"Pretty much," said Minerva. "The Medi-wizard has to sign off…"

"Which I will do gladly," said a woman who had just walked into the room. "We'll miss you, of course, but I reckon Hogwarts needs you more than we do." She took a clip board from Minerva's bed and signed the bottom. "You are hereby released!"

There was a loud popping sound. "Wait!" shouted Professor Greene from the doorway.

"How did you get here?" asked Minerva.

"I… I just arrived. I wanted to see if… you were feeling better," said Jade.

"Well, she's feeling fine," said Hastings.

"I was going to bring you this potion here. This should give you energy to make the trip."

"I don't much feel like taking a potion just now," said Minerva. "I've taken enough potions the past few months. Thanks though."

"Nonsense," said Professor Green. "Why, just take a sip, it'll only—"

Professor Greene tripped over one of the many plants sitting on the ground and fell to the floor, the bottle soaring out of her hands, flying across the room, and shattering on the tile by the door. It emanated a sweet, though mediciney smell, along with something else.

"What is that?" asked Odessa.

Hastings, who could tell exactly what it was, bent over and was promptly sick on the floor.

"What the-" said Minerva.

"_Experliarmus_!" shouted Gabe, and Jade's wand flew out of her hand. The others trained a wand on Jade, and she put her hands up in the air, like she'd been arrested.

"What on earth is going on here?" Minerva exclaimed, standing up.

"Professor," Hastings said, wiping her mouth. "I'm sorry, but that potion had blood lilies in it."

"Wh-what?" Professor Greene stammered. "It couldn't possibly…I don't know…I just…Mr. Puddinghaste gave me that potion to bring to you." The room grew uncomfortably still with this pronouncement. It was Minerva who first spoke,

"I still don't understand what all this fuss is about. Would someone please be so kind as to explain it me?"

Sirius stepped forward, "I know this seems rather odd, Minerva, and I apologize for that. The thing is…we've thought for some time that someone was poisoning you."

"Poisoning me? Good heavens Potter, I thought you had more sense than your father." At these words Sirius' face turned red.

"It was my idea," Odessa confessed, stepping forward. "You see…I…" she paused for a moment, feeling a little silly. "It all started when you got sick. We found O'Reilly in Hastings' office going through her books. He mentioned something about thinking you were being cursed. It seemed odd to us too. No one gets the flu anymore and…well…it just didn't make sense. And then you weren't getting any better. Gabe suspected the same thing when they couldn't find a reason for your illness. We knew it couldn't be the flu because you'd be better by now. And then Hastings' office was broken into again and a lot of her stuff was taken. We presumed it was by whoever was harming you. We thought it was O'Reilly, he kept acting so strange. He would show up at the oddest times and stalk me. He mentioned that he thought it was Professor Greene. We always thought it was O'Reilly. It could still be, I suppose…but it seems as though he has more of an obsession with…" Odessa paused, embarrassed.

"With Odessa," Gabe broke in. "But the fact that he mentioned Jade made us a bit suspicious of her anyway. Especially considering that the last time you were supposed to return Jade showed up and then you were too ill to come back to Hogwarts. When she returned so suddenly here, anxious you for to take that potion we all assumed the same thing. It was confirmed when the bottle broke. Hastings was sick because it has essence of blood lilies in it."

"Well, it seems like a lot has been happening since I've been gone. Do you have anything to say Jade?" She asked. "I think you can put your wands down," she added as she sat back down.

Professor Jade looked rather upset, "I had no idea this was going on." She said. "I knew the students were acting odd, which I told Minerva about. And I've never liked O'Reilly, he's always been a bit too pretentious for my taste, but my goodness." She paused, thinking. "The last time I came here to bring Minerva home I brought her a potion as well, from Falcon. He mentioned that she gets motion sickness and that it would help. She fell ill again shortly afterwards. I never put two and two together. Falcon suggested I bring this potion as well, for the same reason. You don't really think…?" Professor Greene went over to wear the bottle had broken and took a quick breath. "But Gabe's right, there is essence of blood lily in there." Her eyes got wide, "I left Falcon in charge while I was gone. Isabella has been sick the past few weeks. Similar symptoms now that I think about it. We have to get back. That is…if you believe me."

"I do," Minerva said. "I've known you for twenty years now Jade and if you were going to try something you would have done it years ago. Besides, I happen to know that your potion skills are not the best." Minerva eyed the other four, questioningly.

"I believe her too," Hastings said, feeling bad for having suspected her in the first place.

"Me too," the others chimed in.

"Well then, I need to get back to Hogwarts immediately. Who knows what Falcon is up to." She looked at the group. "Gabe, why don't you come with me, goodness knows I'll need some help. And Hastings, you too if you feel up to it. We need your skills. Odessa and Sirius can go with Minerva on the train."

"I am perfectly capable of apparting," Professor McGonagall said irritably.

"Not after how sick you've been," Gabe said. "We don't want you splinching yourself. We'll see you tonight." With three loud pops Gabe, Hastings and Professor Greene disappeared.

"Shall we?" Sirius asked, offering Minerva and Odessa an arm each.


	31. Chapter 31

A/N I apologize for the long waits between updates – I've been having problems having uploading my documents to fanfiction.

They found muggle transport to Kings Cross Station, and had a small lunch while waiting for the eleven o'clock train. Sitting on a bench at platform 9 3/4 was odd for Sirius and Odessa, who hadn't ridden the train since they were students. They were used to the hustle and bustle of several hundred students boarding, now there were only three or four other wizards waiting to board.

"Different, isn't it?" asked Sirius as he took a large bight of a Reuben sandwich.

"Certainly is," said Odessa. "How are you, Minerva?"

"Fair enough, dear," said Professor McGonagall. "I'm still not sure what to make of all of this. I just hope the students are all right. They were left with that Puddinghaste fellow... I don't know what to think."

"It certainly doesn't make sense," said Odessa. "I mean, we all knew he was a bloody prat, and ambitious to boot... but trying to poison you... Just doesn't seem like something a prior Gryffindor would do."

"Not all Slytherins go bad," said Minerva, "And not all Ravenclaws turn out good. You really must get over your house prejudice."

Chagrinned, Odessa looked at the ground and said, "You're right, of course. It's just... I'm very wary of people these days. Remember how long everyone said Severus Snape was loyal to the Order? Turned out to be Voldemort's right hand... until Sirius's dad defeated him."

"Oh, that," said Sirius, rolling his eyes. "Famous Harry Potter... the boy who lived. You know... people have come up to me in the street and asked me if I have a scar like my dad's? Mental, all of them!"

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that," said Minerva, "Yes, your father was famous. He didn't ever want to be. It just sort of happened. He is one of the humblest wizards I have had the pleasure to know."

"Yes... but you're not related to him. Mighty big shoes to fill," said Sirius.

"Which you fill quite nicely," said Minerva. "Don't let your father's legacy get you down. Remember, you're part of that legacy. Never forget that you come from a proud heritage, Sirius."

"Thanks for the encouragement," said Sirius. "I'll work on remembering that. I just want to be known for something I did, not something my father did."

"Train's here," said Odessa. They stood up, boarded the train, and headed off for Hogsmeade Station, hoping Professor Greene, Hastings, and Gabe had everything under control.

When Professor Greene, Hastings and Gabe apparated in front of the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade they found the usual few people going here or there and the sky was a brilliant blue. The air, crisp but a little chill foretold the coming of spring. It cheered them all somewhat.

"Come dears," said Jade, "We should get back up to the castle."

"Sunday," said Hastings, "A bit empty for a Hogsmeade Weekend, isn't it?"

"Oh, it was canceled," said Professor Greene, "With the suspicious way students have been acting it seemed best to use mass punishment in this case. Not fair to everyone, I realize, but I hope that it will teach them a lesson. We should get there as soon as possible, however, you never know what could be happening."

They trudged up to the castle, surprised to find no one on the school grounds. It was as quiet as a school day.

Hastings looked around, "You know, you would think that on such a fine day, some children would be outside. "Wands at the ready," said Jade. Both Gabriel and Hastings pulled them out, and continued walking with them.

"Sorry we didn't trust you," said Hastings, "We just... wanted to make sure that everything was all right."

"I understand of course, dear," said Jade. She stumbled a bit, "Oh, my laces have come undone. Go on ahead, I'll catch right up." She bent down to tie her shoes and Hastings and Gabriel walked onward.

"Do you suppose her feelings are hurt?" asked Hastings.

"Nah," said Gabe, "I think she's well enough. I just hope Puddingwaste didn't do anything to the kids." Hastings laughed at the nickname, remembering when she herself had called Falcon that.

Suddenly, both of them were blasted off their feet, and flew about twenty yards, feeling their wands ripping away from their hands. When they landed on the ground, silently but effectively disarmed, they turned over to see Jade standing over them, holding three wands.

"You two really ought to have practiced silent spells a little better," she said with a sneer.

Hastings opened her mouth but Jade quickly silenced them both, _"Silencio!_ I am not silly enough to allow either of you to speak or call out in anyway. Not that it will do you any good, the school is already under my control. Now up with you both." Holding her wand steady, Jade watched as they stood up. She waved her wand once more and ropes tied their hands up. "Can't have you thinking you can escape. Now, walk towards the castle. If you make one move that's out of place I will kill you." Glancing at each other, both Hastings and Gabe silently agreed that it was better to obey for now. Slowly they started to trudge towards Hogwarts, wondering what had become of the students.

The hallways were empty, as were the classrooms. The castle was as silent as a tomb. Professor Greene marched them down to the dungeons, through a maze of hallways that neither Hastings nor Gabe knew existed, and into a small, stone room. Professor Greene shoved them inside and slammed the door shut. Hastings and Gabe stared at each other, unable to talk or to move their hands, which were still bound. Gabe slowly maneuvered around and awkwardly tried to write something in the dust with his foot. Hastings leaned over to see if she could read what he had written.

The word **_Pocket_** was barely legible and Hastings could only hope that she had read it correctly has she scooted closer to Gabe. She backed up to him, scooted herself around, and stuck both hands into the gaping pocket of his robes She felt around, moving her entire body to shuffle through various rubbish. She pulled out a piece of parchment, quills, an ink bottle, some Droobles Best Blowing Gum wrappers, and… a pocket knife! As it dropped to the ground, she turned and smiled brightly.

Gabe smiled back, and shrugged his shoulders. He knelt down and inched around to pick up the knife, and in no time his bonds were cut. Standing again, he walked around her and cut her loose as well. Once free, Hastings cupped his cheeks and gave him a quick kiss and a thumbs up.

Gabe walked toward the door and checked it, though he knew it would not open. Without his wand he was next to helpless but he tried in his mind, while concentrating on the lock, to open the door. _Alohomora! _he focused on it completely. There was a faint light coming from the key hole, which cheered him greatly, but that was all, and when he tried the door again, it still wouldn't budge. _Now what? _he thought. He knelt on the floor again where he'd scribbled the word "pocket", and wrote something else in the dust as Hastings watched. "Together, maybe? Silent spell, combining forces... _Alohomora_!" Hastings smiled and nodded, though she wasn't sure of the effectiveness of such a tactic. If it worked, she realized it would mean changes to teaching styles and making wands obsolete. Still, she shrugged and walked toward the door with Gabe.

Both of them concentrated like never before, focusing all their attention on the lock, and reciting the charm over and over in their heads. Once or twice they were able to get light to shimmer as Gabe had, an even stronger light than he had managed, but it remained locked. Finally, frustrated and exhausted from the effort, Hastings gave up and leaned against the door, breathing deeply. Gabe did the same.

As she leaned against the door trying to figure a way out Hastings remembered her first year at Hogwarts, walking through its strange corridors and looking at odd things. She'd seen a placard of remembrance on the wall in a hallway, revering the school's prior long-time headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. It mentioned his contributions to wizard-kind, and his eventual brave demise. There was a quote at the bottom of the placard; this Hastings particularly remembered, for she often went back to read it when she needed encouragement. It read, "I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me... Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."

Hastings thought it strange that she should think of this quote here and now... but it gave her comfort. She'd heard the stories, of course. She'd grown up believing the characters of the old days to be folk-heroes. Why, one of her best friends was the son of The Boy Who Lived... So much legacy was wrapped up in the heroes of wizard-kind, and Hastings realized that, even if she played a small role, she was a part of it. Even now, the school was facing a grave danger... Peril was here once more. A new legacy could be born this night... if only they had the bravery to finish what was started. The pride of her house... _Gryffindor House_ surged through her. _We have to save Hogwarts! Please... help me. We have to..._

Without warning, the door opened, and she and Gabe (who were still leaning against it) fell to the floor outside.

"Well, that was..." said Hastings, then stopped, shocked.

"You... can talk!" said Gabe. "I... _I _can talk! What was that all about?"

Hastings smiled and said, "I have a hunch... but there's no time. Let's go."

"But we don't have our wands..." said Gabe.

"Look!" said Hastings. There, on the floor in front of them, as though they'd been blithely discarded, were their wands. Gabe picked his wand up, staring at Hastings.

"We really don't have time," Hastings apologized, grabbing her own wand. "Let's just say Dumbledore has returned."

"If you say so," Gabe said, still fingering his wand. "We need a plan."


	32. Chapter 32

"I hope everything is okay at Hogwarts," Minerva said nervously, glancing out of the window.

"I'm sure Gabe, Hastings and Jade can handle Falcon," Sirius said reassuringly.

"Still, I'd feel better if you two would apparate to Hogsmeade and check on them. We don't know if he had anyone working with him."

"Like O'Reilly," Odessa said quietly to Sirius.

"Yes, like O'Reilly," Minerva echoed. "My ears may be old but they aren't deaf Miss Grace." Odessa blushed. "Seriously," Minerva continued, "I can handle a train ride by myself. I want you two to leave."

"If you're sure…"

"Would you two stop coddling me! I've been around longer than your great grandparents. I think I know if I can handle a train. Now go!" Without further argument, Odessa and Sirius apparated to Hogsmeade.

"Shall we?" Sirius asked, looking around the quiet village and then at the school.

Odessa nodded, "It seems so quiet. I wonder where everyone is at?"

"I don't know. I hope the other three are okay." Sirius and Odessa hurried towards the castle.

"Where should we go now?" Hastings whispered, as they huddled behind a privacy curtain in the hospital wing.

"I'm not sure," Gabe replied. "I thought for sure we'd find Falcon here."

"Where do you think all the students are?"

"I don't want to think about that right now," Gabe replied.

"Still, we need to check on them. We can start with Gryffindor, they're the most likely to be fighting back. And we're Sirius' friends, and he's their head of house, it's the best combination possible."

"Let's go then," Gabe replied, inching his way to the door with Hastings watching his back. Gabe peeked into the corridors, they were still empty and still.

"Do you think Jade's going to use the students as weapons against us?" Hastings asked.

"We should be ready for the possibility. Falcon was in Gryffindor too. He may have gotten to them first."

"Maybe we should try Ravenclaw first, your old house."

"No, I think Gryffindor was the right idea, come on." Gabe edged along the wall to the staircase. He and Hastings cautiously went to the third floor.

"There's a secret passage on the fourth floor – behind the tapestry of the trolls." Hastings said. Gabe nodded and allowed her to lead once they reached the fourth floor. Slowly they crept behind the tapestry and through the door.

"Don't move." Gabe froze as he heard the cold voice and footsteps coming up behind him. He quickly ran through possibly scenarios in his head.

"STUPEFY!" Hastings yelled, turning around. Two people were blasted off of their feet and several yards down the corridor.

"Hastings?" A voice asked.

"Ode?"

"Yeah, it's me, what do you think you're doing?"

"I thought you were Greene," Hastings said.

"And?" Odessa asked, helping Sirius to his feet.

"And she's the one behind all of this."

"Are you sure?" Sirius asked, rubbing the back of his head.

"Positive," Gabe said. "She took our wands, tied us up, silenced us and then threw us into the dungeon."

"Then how did you get here?" Odessa asked.

"I'll explain later," Hastings said. "What we're you doing in the passage?"

"We were worried about the students. We were going to check the Gryffindor common room. We think they may be cursed and following Greene."

"Why do you think that?" Gabe asked.

"Because Patrick Murphy threw his cat eating shoe at me after I took his wand," Sirius said. "He's currently immobilized and hidden. I'm not sure what curse she has them under. It isn't Imperius."

"Maybe we should split up," Gabe suggested.

"I think we're stronger together," Sirius said. "But let's not all go charging into the common room at once. We need to be smart. Gabe and I'll go in first. Ode and Haste, you follow in a few minutes and make sure everything is okay. Also, you can guard the outside of the portrait. If they only see us two come in they might not suspect that you're outside."

"What about Greene?" Ode asked as they reached the end of the corridor.

"I doubt she's hanging out in the Gryffindor Common Room," Sirius said. "Let's worry about the students first and then her. My guess is that she's in the headmistress office." Sirius slowly pushed opened the door and peeked out from behind the tapestry of queens on the wall – there was no one in sight. "Let's go."

The Fat Lady was snoring in her portrait when Sirius came up to her and gave the password. "Wronski Feint!" The Fat Lady jerked awake and said, "Come in, dears… I was just nodding off…" As her portrait swung forward, her breathing turned into a snore again.

"We'll go in," whispered Gabe. "See you in a few." He reached over and gave Hastings a quick kiss, then followed Sirius through the entrance.

"Just how long are we supposed to wait here?" asked Odessa after several minutes had passed.

"I don't know," said Hastings. "Till we won't look suspicious."

"Four teachers in the Gryffindor common room at once is already suspicious," Odessa pointed out. "And how did you two get away, anyhow?"

"I don't know if you'll believe it," said Hastings. "But I think… somehow… Albus Dumbledore has returned to Hogwarts. Legend says…"

"Come on," said Odessa, "You don't believe in that, do you?"

"I don't know, Ode," said Hastings, then told her friend what had happened down in the dungeons.

"That's incredible," said Odessa. "I wonder…" They heard a noise from inside the common room. "Let's go!"

"Wronski Feint!" Hastings shouted. The portrait swung forward, admitting them. They charged into the room with their wands raised and came to sudden halt. Lamps, chairs, logs, books and other various inanimate objects flew threw the air, crashing into each other. There was no sign of Sirius, Gabe or any students.

"What do you think's going on?" Odessa whispered, holding her wand at ready.

"I have no idea," Hastings said.

"Girl's or Boy's dormitories first?"

"Boys," Hastings said quickly. "Girls tend to fight dirty." Odessa nodded in agreement and the girls snuck up the stairs. Hastings put her ear to the door and listened.

"I don't here anything," she said.

"Doesn't mean they're no there."

"Good point. Ready?" Hastings pointed her wand at the door.

"Ready." The girls blasted the door open. The dust settled to reveal an empty room. They quickly checked under the beds and in the wardrobe, but there was nothing. Slowly they backed out.

"Watch out!" Hastings pushed Odessa out of the way as the wardrobe went flying out of the room. The other furniture and unsecured items quickly followed.

"What is going on?" Odessa asked, standing up.

"I wish I knew. Shall we look in on the girls?" Slowly the two made their way to the girl's dormitory. They blasted open the door and once again the room was empty. And once more items flew out of the room and joined those downstairs. Confused, Hastings and Odessa checked the other rooms, they were all empty. Cautiously they made there way back down the stairs, careful to stay out of the way of flying furniture.

"What now?" Hastings asked.

Odessa shook her head, "I don't know, perhaps-" a giggle from across the room interrupted her. "Perhaps we should leave," Odessa continued, nodding towards the area where the giggle had come from.

"Sounds good," Hastings said, nodding to let Odessa know she had heard the giggle as well. They slowly made their way across the room, dodging furniture. One cabinet was still on the floor. Hastings pointed at the cabinet and Odessa threw the door open. Sitting at the bottom was Falcon Puddinghaste, trying not to laugh.


	33. Chapter 33

"What are you doing, you git!" Hastings asked. Falcon was curled in a ball, clutching his gut, and positively howling with laughter. "Petrificus Totalus!" she yelled. He suddenly stopped moving, and still curled in a ball, he fell out of the cabinet. Looking behind him, she saw darkness, as though a hole had been dug inside the cabinet.

"Do you have a feeling that there are a bunch of Gryffindors in there?" asked Odessa.

"And perhaps two male teachers?" Hastings said.

"Let's go." Both of them illuminated their wand tips and climbed into the cabinet. Immediately, they were sliding down a long, steep shaft, and it was only when they were totally out of control that they thought twice about the wisdom of such an action.

"Do you think they'll find us here?" asked Gabe.

"I'm sure they will," said Sirius. "Too bad Puddingwaste got away when we cursed him.

"True, mate," said Gabe, "But at least he'll have a stomach ache from laughing so hard."

"Yeah," said Sirius, "But now we're stuck down here. I couldn't climb up that shaft again if my life depended on it. My dad was lucky enough to have a Phoenix available to him. How'd Falcon get back up?"

"I don't know," said Gabe, "But what about exploring here? I'm almost certain the Gryffindors are around somewhere." Just then, something crashed into Gabe, and he toppled onto the floor, something heavy on top of him. Shaking his head to clear it, he looked up and said, "Well, Hello, Hastings."

"Hi," said Hastings, embarrassed about landing on him. She shoved herself up, then fell again when Odessa rammed into her.

"A most unusual evening," Gabe said, "Two women falling for me."

"Keep dreaming," said Odessa, who stood up and offered Hastings a hand. "Steep slide, that. It's a long trip from the tower."

"Yeah," said Sirius. "Too bad you didn't come a little earlier—you might have stopped Falcon from shoving us down this stinking hole."

"Well, we did… er, incapacitate him," said Hastings.

"Yeah," said Gabe. "Apparently, a laughing curse doesn't stop the guy. Noted for future reference."

"He's not going anywhere now," said Odessa. "He's petrified… effectively. I wonder how we're going to get out, now we've found you."

"Yeah," said Hastings, smiling at Gabe. "I never thought you'd be the damsel in distress… but we did rescue you."

"I don't think this is what I call being rescued," Sirius said wryly. "Actually, I don't think we're alone down here. I think the children are here."

"All of them?" asked Odessa.

"All the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws, anyway," said Gabe. "The git probably has the Slytherins somewhere safe."

"Falcon wasn't even a Slytherin while he was here," said Odessa. "He was a Gryffindor. That bloody, traitor!"

"How many times must I tell you, Miss Grace? A student's house has nothing to do with their affiliation to the dark arts." Everyone turned around to see who spoke, and from the shadows emerged Professor O'Reilly.

What are _you_ doing here?" Odessa asked rudely.

"The same thing as you, Miss Grace, trying to figure a way out."

"Where are the students?" Odessa asked.

"I'm afraid that I don't know the answer to that," O'Reilly said. "After our…unfortunate parting in London-"

"Speaking of-" Sirius started to say.

"Not now Mr. Potter, we have more important things to worry about," O'Reilly said. "After I left London I realized that you would never believe me when I told you it was Professor Greene. I've worked with that woman for a long time and I've learned just how cunning she is. She is a master at potions-"

"She is not!" Gabe interrupted.

"I assure you, she is," O'Reilly said, "which leaves me to my next point. She is also a master of deceit. She is the daughter of Voldemort and has some fancy idea that she's going to take over the world since he wasn't able to. She has also decided that his fatal mistake was not taking over at Hogwarts first, which is what she is currently doing. Lucky for us, she has nowhere near the level of talent her father had."

"How is she taking over the school?" Hastings asked.

"Well first, she took control of that fellow, Puddinghaste. He never had much moral fiber to begin with, it was easy to take him over. With his help, she took over certain numbers of students at a time – using a blood lily potion. She was testing to see how many she could control at one time. Between her and Puddinghaste they could control about half of the school."

"Which half did she choose?" Hastings asked.

"Gryffindors and Ravenclaws," O'Reilly replied. "He wanted smarts and bravery. Hufflepuffs are to nice and Slytherins care about themselves a bit to much. I'm sure you noticed that they kept coming in sick?"

"I have to confess that I didn't notice they were all Hufflepuffs and Slytherins," Gabe said.

"Greene was trying to find the correct level of sickness to incapacitate the students without harming them. She hopes to have them on her side in the future, but she doesn't want them in the way right now. How she plans to use the younger years is anyone's guess."

"So where are the students?" Gabe asked.

"As I said before, I don't know" O'Reilly said. "I confronted Greene hoping to either overpower her or be taken to where the students are. I ended up here, quite alone until you came along."

"What do we do now?" Odessa asked.

"We get out of here," Sirius said. "And we need to work together," he added, glaring at O'Reilly. "At least for now."

"Make sure you do, boy," O'Reilly said. "I'm not as feeble as I look."

"How do we get back up though?" Hastings asked, looking at the gaping tunnel above them.

"Hogwarts has many chambers," O'Reilly said. "As a student in Slytherin you learn about the underground ones. I haven't been in this particular chamber, but I know there are a series of tunnels that connect. All we have to do is find one I recognize and we can get out."

"That could take days," Odessa said.

"Do you have a better idea?" O'Reilly asked. The four of them shook their heads. "All right then, try to be thankful that I hadn't already left before you arrived. Let's go."

Together, the five of them trudged along the underground tunnel—a maze of passages that soon had their heads spinning. O'Reilly alone seemed to be undaunted by the confusing route. Hastings, who'd never liked dark, enclosed spaces, was feeling dizzy. "I hope we get out soon," she said.

"It's all right," said Odessa, "I'm sure we will soon. Try to think of something else."

Gabe took Hastings' hand and interlocked their fingers. "It's okay," he said.

"You must think I'm an idiot," said Hastings. "I get sick at blood and become a coward in a cave."

"Everyone has fears," said Sirius. "Nothing to be embarrassed about."

"What are you scared of," asked Odessa.

"The pressure of having a celebrity as a father," said Sirius.

"I don't like heights," said Gabe.

"I hate bugs," said Odessa. "Especially the crunchy ones."

"What about you?" asked Hastings, tapping O'Reilly on the shoulder.

"I refuse to answer that," he said. "And you should be quiet… I hear something."

"Well, aren't you just a right foul git," said Hastings, but Odessa shushed everyone.

"Listen," she said. "I hear something too. It's voices… from… from the other side of this wall."

O'Reilly walked up to the cave wall and knocked on it with his fist. "Funny," he said. "The rock is weak here. There a… curse protecting it though. It's a blood curse. It requires blood to get through."

"Well, I don't know about that," said Hastings, thinking about the smell of blood and feeling even sicker. "We could find another way."

"It will only take a few drops," said O'Reilly, pulling out a pocket knife.

"You should really allow me," said Sirius, reaching back to punch O'Reilly in the nose.

Odessa grabbed his arm and said, "That's not going to help."

"So?"

They heard a slicing sound and O'Reilly gave a grunt. O'Reilly wiped his bleeding hand on the rock, and it opened into another cave. Inside, there were about two hundred students, huddled together on the floor.

"Are you okay?" asked Gabe of Hastings, who had turned green.

"I'll live," she said, sounding sick. But what is that?"

Looking along the wall, they all saw why the children were huddled. Inside the room there were no less than six Dementors.

Immediately, there was a change in the teachers as well. All felt as though the happiness was being sucked out of them. Hastings closed her eyes and thought of a good memory… there were so many, if only she could remember. She thought of her sister… then thought of how she died—she heard her screaming. That wouldn't work… then she remembered how happy she'd been when she found out she and Odessa would be working at Hogwarts with Sirius and Falcon… but then, Falcon had turned traitor… that wouldn't work either. Finally, she remembered Odessa, Sirius, herself and Gabe sitting at a table in the Three Broomsticks during the Christmas season. Everything had been perfect. Now, that was a good memory.

"_Expecto Patronum_!" she shouted. Suddenly, her wand tip ignited with a silvery fire, and jolting from her wand came the figure of a mighty Thestral, sweeping through the cave. It was joined by three other patronuses. They easily fought off the Dementors, scattering them far away.

"Come on," said Hastings, feeling braver than she ever had before. "Let's get out of here." As the students began to file out Odessa and Sirius tried to do a mental count.

"Looks like first and second years from all four houses, and the rest of Hufflepuff and Slytherin."

Sirius nodded in agreement, "Okay everyone," he said loudly. "I need one person to tell me what happened." He looked around the group and pointed at a seventh year Hufflepuff, "Miss Locke, how did you end up in here?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "I'm not completely positive. We were in our common room last night when all of the lights started to flicker and go out. When we tried to relight them nothing happened. There was talking and several thuds, but I just figured that people were running into things. Then I fell over, in a full body bind, and then I was silenced. Within a few minutes everyone in our house had been bound."

"Simple yet effective," Sirius mumbled to himself. "Is that what happened to the rest of you?" He asked, looking around. The students nodded.

"Did you see who it was?" Professor O'Reilly asked. This time the room was full of shaking heads.

"It'd make it easier to control them later if they didn't know it was Greene," Odessa whispered to the rest. "I think we should leave the younger ones down here until things are worked out. We should take the sixth and seventh years with us."

"And put them in that kind of danger?" Hastings asked.

"There's only five of us, do you have a better idea?" Odessa asked, looking around. No one said anything. "Okay then. We need someone to stay behind with them." Once again she eyed the group, everyone avoided her gaze. She sighed, "All right, I'll stay behind. But if you three become heroes without me…" she waved her wand at them in warning.

"Enough of this chatter," O'Reilly broke in, "we need to find Greene."

"Listen up everyone," Hastings said. "Professor Greene is trying to take over the school," she paused for a moment as gasps and murmurs of surprise filled the room. "I want any sixth and seventh year who is willing to come with us to help take the school back. Please realize that this is a dangerous mission, we don't know to what lengths Professor Greene is willing to go to keep the school." She paused and looked at the older students in the eye, "I cannot promise that you'll come out of this with your lives." The silence that followed was deafening.

"I'll go," a tall, blonde man in green robes stepped forward. Slowly, more followed.

"Who's going to stay with the younger years?" A voice called out.

"I want to fight," another said.

Hastings held her hands up, "I don't want any of you to fight, but I don't know if we can do this alone. Professor Greene as bewitched many of the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws to act on her behalf. That's too many people for five of us to handle. Professor Grace will stay with the younger years. I want the fifth years to help her protect this area if it comes under attack. More likely than not, it will be ignored for now."

"We need to get going," Sirius said. He leaned over and whispered in Odessa's ear, "Are you going to be okay?"

She gave him a brave smile, "Yes. But I think I'll teach them the bat bogey hex while we wait." Sirius smiled and kissed her on the cheek. "Let's go," he said to the others. Odessa and the younger years watched them march out of the cave, Professor O'Reilly in the lead. Sighing, she turned.

"Hello everyone. While we wait, I'm going to teach you a few easy curses, most of them childish pranks, but rather useful." She watched as grins broke out around the room. "However," she added. "If I catch you using these curses on other students or professors after this is over, I will make sure that you fully understand what it is to live life as a muggle maid. Understood? Okay then, let's get started."


	34. Chapter 34

"Here's the exit," O'Reilly whispered. He said a few words and pointed his wand at the wall. A stone slab slowly slid back, revealing an empty hallway in the dungeon. "Let's go."

Hastings had to hand it to Malcolm O'Reilly, for the prat that he was, he knew what he was doing. He got them out of the cave faster than you could say Dumbledore, and soon they were racing along the corridor, headed for…

"Where are we going, anyway?" asked Hastings.

"To the dungeons," said O'Reilly. "I have a hunch that's where we'll find Greene."

"Wouldn't she be in one of the greenhouses?" asked Gabe. "Breeding some deadly 'Little Shop of Horrors' plant?"

O'Reilly, who had never watched muggle TV, didn't catch the joke, but Hastings and Sirius chuckled nervously.

"Feed me, Seymour…" muttered Sirius.

"I don't think she's in the greenhouses," said O'Reilly. "She was using Blood Lilies, and she's probably brewing a potion as we speak." Once at the door to the potions classroom, they pushed it open carefully.

"After you," said O'Reilly. "I'll guard your rear."

"You're not getting anywhere _near_ my rear!" said Hastings, and Sirius snorted in laugher.

"Just go!" said O'Reilly, shoving them before him. Together they opened the door, and saw, huddled in the corner, the remainder of the Hogwarts students—and in the center of the room was Professor Greene.

Jade looked up and saw them enter. "Good work, Malcolm," she said, "I was beginning to doubt your loyalty."

Hastings looked at him, her mouth open wide. His wand was trained on them, and a sneer spread across his face. "I guess being in Slytherin _does_ mean something, after all," she said in disgust. "You traitor."

"Put your wands down," O'Reilly said. Hastings, Gabe and Sirius lowered their wands reluctantly. "Oh, and I'm not a traitor" said Professor O'Reilly, "I've been on Professor Greene's side from the beginning."

"Why? Because you're her little brother or something?" asked Gabe sarcastically.

"No," said Jade. "That would be Mr. Puddinghaste… or, should I say, Falcon Greene." She shrugged, "At least that's what he currently believes."

Inside came the man, Falcon, followed by a Gryffindor seventh year. "Found him in a cupboard, Professor," said the boy. "I un-petrified him."

"Excellent," said Professor Greene. "Falcon, I need you to lead the students. O'Reilly, if you could." She nodded towards Hastings, Sirius and Gabe.

"You can't do that!" said Hastings as he moved in front of her.

"Drop your wands," O'Reilly said.

Sirius turned toward O'Reilly and said, "I've wanted to do this for some time…" he nodded at Hastings who dropped to the ground and swept her leg around to trip O'Reilly.

Caught off guard, he tripped and his wand fell out of his hand. Gabriel grabbed for it and pointed one at Falcon and one at Professor Greene.

Meanwhile, Sirius balled up his fist and punched O'Reilly in the nose as he was getting back to his feet. O'Reilly cupped his hands over his face and dropped to his knees, effectively incapacitated. Hastings had a wand pointed at Greene along with Gabe and Sirius pointed his wand at Falcon.

"You forget something," said Professor Greene calmly. "I have the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw students under my control. They're on my side and you'll never get past all of them."

"I DON'T THINK SO, JADE!" A voice shouted from the doorway. Professor McGonagall raised her wand, "CONTEGGIO!" A blue light filled the room and the students and Falcon were trapped behind a shimmery shield.

"Professor!" Sirius said as Minerva slumped to the ground, the exertion of running to the castle and the spell being too much for her weakened body. The three of them rushed to her.

Professor Green laughed mockingly as she advanced, her wand trained on them, "Expelleramus!" She said, catching their wands as they flew towards her. "Don't have much training in the area of defense do you? I'm disappointed in you Miss Applespice, I expected so much more. Foolish of you to think you could stop me. Thought I was as weak as my father? I can guarantee you that I'm not. I was hoping I could convince you to see my side of things – we almost had Odessa before you broke the spell. But I see that I will have to kill you instead. Who should I kill first?'' Greene pocketed the wands, but Sirius' wand slipped from her hand to the floor, unnoticed. Sirius eyed his wand, trying to figure out how he was going to get it back. Greene took another step forward, right onto the wand. It moved beneath her and she fell to the ground with a crash, banging her head on the stone floor. Sirius moved quickly and grabbed his wand, tripped over his robe and landed on top of her. Sitting up on the unconscious Greene he looked over at Hastings, who had O'Reilly effectively locked down on the floor in some shape that looked rather unpleasant.

Hastings looked at Sirius and burst out laughing.

"What is it?" he asked.

"You really did defeat a dark witch by sitting on her!" She cracked up, trying not to lose her hold on O'Reilly. Trying to laugh with her he bound Greene up and went over to check on Minerva.

"Are you okay?" he asked as she slowly sat up.

"Of course I am," she snapped. "Just a little out of practice." She looked around, "What happened?"

"Sirius sat on Greene and defeated her!" Hastings crowed.

"Would you shut up?" he said, trying to look annoyed.

"Greene tripped," Gabe said from his position by the shield that was holding Falcon and the students. "Knocked herself out. Hastings put O'Reilly in a…a…I don't know what, but he can't move."

"Where's Odessa?" Minerva asked.

"Guarding the rest of the students.

"I'll go get her," Sirius volunteered. He made his way out of the dungeon and back to the secret entrance. A few minutes later he found Odessa and the students.

"What happened?" he asked, looking at her face and the faces of the other students.

"The students are now very good at bat bogey hexes," she said. "The problem is that you never taught me the cure and these things are really uncomfortable."

"Did you really think a bat bogey hex would stop Greene?" he asked as he performed the counter curse.

"Well…no. But we went over several other jinxes first and then they asked to learn this one. I was getting worried you know, what took so long?"

"Turns out O'Reilly was working with Greene. Falcon, it appears, has been bewitched to think he is Greene's brother and assistant."

Odessa bit her lip to keep from laughing. "Who took Greene out?" She asked.

Sirius smiled proudly, "I did!"

"By sitting on her," a voice said behind them.

"Sitting on her?" Odessa asked, turning to look at Gabe.

"That's not quite how it happened," Sirius grumbled, shooting daggers at Gabe.

"Yeah, it really is," Gabe said, smiling. "Anyway, McGonagall sent me down here to make sure everyone is okay. They've rounded up the students in a dungeon, along with Falcon. They just have to wait for the spell to wear off. And Aurors are here taking Greene and O'Reilly away.

"Perfect!" Odessa said excitedly. "Do you think we could get something to eat? I'm starving."

"Spoken like a true girl," said Hastings, who had just entered. As they walked out, and headed for the teachers' lounge, everyone felt a little tired and a lot hungry.

"What did you do to O'Reilly?" asked Odessa.

"Exactly what I did to Forester Ackerly in third year," said Hastings, "When he said I looked like a dung beetle."

"You didn't…" said Odessa, dawning with realization.

"Yup," said Hastings. "I gave him the pretzel."

"What exactly does that entail?" asked Gabe.

"You put them in a Full-Nelson and then tie them in a knot. Then you kick them in the—"

"So, are you scared of your girlfriend yet?" asked Sirius, laughing.

"Nope," said Gabe, beaming with pride. "She's my knight in shining armor, after all. I don't have to be afraid of anyone with her around."

"Who loves ya, baby?" asked Hastings with a wink, and hooked her arm through his.

"Of course," Gabe added. "It'd be nice if I could rescue you next time."

"Just sit on her," Odessa said, ducking out of Sirius' reach. Laughing, the four of them made their way to the Great Hall.


	35. Chapter 35

**Epilogue**

It only took a few days for things to go back to normal—if you could ever call things normal at Hogwarts—and with Professor Greene gone, Herbology exams were cancelled for the year, much to the students' pleasure. O'Reilly being gone was helpful as well, because Odessa didn't feel like she had to look over her shoulder every second. And Falcon's absence meant that Gabriel Lupin's days were pleasant, and Hastings was able to visit him often.

Minerva began to get stronger, and soon she was back to her old feisty, yet stern, self. When she took one hundred points away from a Slytherin girl for attempting to steal the rest of Jade's store of Blood Lilies everyone knew she was going to be okay.

It was the final day of the school year, and the kids were all outside enjoying the June sunshine and saying hasty goodbyes. Some were serving detention because their "hasty goodbyes" had not been so hasty, and had been discovered in the astronomy tower in the middle of the night. A very proud Odessa had just returned to the teachers' lounge from setting them on the task of scrubbing all the chamber pots in the castle.

"How'd you like your first year working at Hogwarts?" asked Hastings.

"Brilliant," said Odessa, "But I think it's cursed… it's never boring here, is it?"

"Never," said Hastings.

"How about you?" asked Sirius. "How'd you like being back here?"

"Dead brilliant," said Hastings. "I can't believe I ever left. I let some stupid injury scare me."

"Well, I guess this year built your confidence considerably then, huh?" asked Gabe.

"You bet," said Hastings. "Did you like working here?"

"I did," said Gabe, "When Puddingwaste wasn't around. And I should be back next year."

"So, what are your guys' plans for the summer," asked Odessa. "Staying here at Hogwarts? Or maybe getting a part-time job at the ministry?"

"Not on your life," said Hastings.

"Me neither," said Gabe, laughing.

"Nor me," said Sirius. "Actually… I was thinking about doing a little… traveling."

"Me too," said Gabe. "We've been talking, you see…"

"And seeing as things are pretty uncertain for a Hogwarts employee," Sirius continued.

"We could keel over and die any moment…" said Gabe.

"What are you two up to?" asked Odessa.

"Yeah, what gives?" asked Hastings.

Gabe and Sirius looked at each other and smiled. They waved their wands and the room was suddenly filled with flowers. Sirius grabbed Odessa's hand and pulled her into a corner. He pulled from a pocket in his robes a tiny box, which he handed to Odessa as he kneeled down.

"Yes!" Odessa said, before she even opened the box.

"You don't know what's in there," Sirius said. "Could be a snake, you know."

"The answer is still yes!" Odessa said, throwing her arms around him.

On the opposite side of the room Gabe took a random flower from the bunch and waved his hand over it, presenting it to Hastings.

"Really?" Hastings asked, taking the rose and seeing the ring attached to the stem.

"Really," Gabe said with a smile. "I've never met a more amazing woman."

It was decided that Odessa and Hastings would marry the two gentlemen as soon as school was out and travel throughout the summer.

Because they would remain friends for all time, you _might_ say they lived happily ever after… but as it's _never_ been a quiet year at Hogwarts, our four heroes were soon called upon once more to save the world from dark wizardry.


End file.
